For modern architects and interior designers, commercial design is no longer just about optimizing square footage, ergonomic seating, or sleek glass partitions. Today, corporate clients demand spaces that possess a soul—environments that articulate who they are, where they have been, and what they believe in.

When a global management consulting firm stepped into its centennial year and relocated to a new 10,000 sq. ft. office in Mumbai, they faced a distinct design challenge. How does a company celebrating a 100-year global legacy remain deeply connected to the local soil? How do you ensure that an international workspace doesn't feel like a transient waiting room, but a permanent home? 

The answer lay in a design strategy that blended global thought leadership with heritage craftsmanship, conceptualized and created by EkiBeki.

The Philosophy: "Tradition Reimagined"

At the core of the collaboration among EkiBeki, Interics, and JLL was a shared design philosophy: translating traditional craft practices into contemporary design expressions. Rather than treating heritage art as static, museum-like decoration, the layout treats a century of legacy as a living canvas.

By abstracting classic motifs into bold, modern murals, the design frames 100 years not as a look backward, but as a launchpad for the future.

The Art of the Global: Blending Geographies Cohesively

Ekibeki’s distinct expertise lies in its ability to combine heritage arts from completely different geographies, blending their materials and stories into a single, cohesive visual narrative. By varying tones, layering textures, and playing with scale, diverse regional crafts coexist harmoniously within a high-end corporate layout.

1. The Reception. A Century of Living Art "From Chicago to Mumbai" 

Upon entering the office, visitors are met with a 6.5’ x 4.5’ layered, 3D art celebrating ten decades of history. To represent a hundred years built on human relationships, Ekibeki paired two distinct tribal art forms within a single, unified color palette: Warli (from Maharashtra) and Lippan (a mud and mirror relief craft from Gujarat).

• The Warli Element: Brings geometric order using circles, triangles, and squares to symbolize nature and human connection.
• The Lippan work: Introduces rich texture through its clay molding

By maintaining a shared, muted color language, these two distinct regional practices are integrated into a single, cohesive installation. Tracing a global footprint, the installation moves across cities that have shaped its journey. Chicago emerges through Warli-inspired interpretations of its skyline and the bean shaped Cloud Gate. Düsseldorf finds expression in the Rheinpromenade. Tokyo is evoked through Mt. Fuji, lanterns, and cultural motifs. Mumbai shifts the lens - instead of the familiar Gateway of India, the dynamic architecture of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport alongside the everyday vibrancy of vada pav vendors and balloon sellers at Chowpatty are showcased. 

“History isn’t behind us- it drives us forward.”

               

2. The Boardroom. The Global Fabric: A Map of Connections

The "Glocal" theme reaches its apex here. On the main wall, a massive world map marks their global offices. Instead of using digital vinyl or vinyl decals, the map is executed on painted MDF integrated with traditional Kantha stitching—a textile art form deeply rooted in Indian history. Every hand-stitched thread serves as a metaphor for  the flow of ideas and the endurance of long term partnerships. 

“We are a tapestry of global experience, woven together to create local solutions.”

3. Focus room- a forest, whole in part, part in whole

This is a narrative on forests, the deep greens with aquatic animals and birds have different frames coming together as a circle. 

This is a duet, a jugalbandi, on offwhite canvas, fine silk threads drawn from North Indian Zardosi heritage of silk needlework to trace the rhythms and the quiet harmony of the backwaters. Combined with handpainting, gold birds, each detail invites you to pause, drift into calm. 

4. Tree of Life: A Living Continuum

Every line, every form carries intent. Each detail contributes to a larger whole. Rooted in the age-old Gond art tradition of Madhya Pradesh, known for its intricate patterns, rhythmic detailing, and storytelling drawn from nature, this is the Tree of Life. 

This is not just a motif, but a quiet expression of continuity, where growth is shaped by effort, and every branch reflects a journey built over time. 

The art embodies intricate craftsmanship and reflects the values of hard work and dedication that form the foundation of Kearney. Its flowing branches signify growth and continuity, while the families of owls—drawn from Indian mythology—symbolize knowledge, wisdom, and maturity, echoing the company’s voice and its evolving language. 

Designing for Depth over Decoration

This office demonstrates that luxury isn't found in mass-manufactured replication. Truest luxury resides in the "human-made"—the purposeful texture of handcrafted finishes and the storytelling value embedded within regional crafts.

By trusting a social enterprise like EkiBeki to bridge the gap between master artisans and corporate design, an international firm successfully transformed a 10,000 sq. ft. floor plan into a shared story of roots and reach.

Design Takeaway:  This is not just an office- it is a living narrative of impact. A space where:

History inspires, but does not constrain

Change is embraced, not resisted

People remain the constant driving force 100 years of impact

Infinite possibilities ahead

What inspires us

When we design with our roots, we give global corporations more than a functional workspace. We give them an anchor. We give them an identity. And most of all, we remind the world that India’s artistic legacy is not a thing of the past, but a living, breathing launchpad for the future. 

We hold the power to shape how people feel when they step into a room. This mood created here could just become a blueprint for the future in commercial designs. It proves that ultimate luxury is not imported marble floors or foreign made fixtures, but it lies in the unparalleled wealth of Indian heritage, reinvented for modern spaces. 

When planning a commercial project, we urge everyone to look past standard wall coverings. Consider how combining disparate artistic geographies can ground a space, building an environment where history inspires rather than constrains.