Irony, satire and British eccentricity take centre stage at The Robinson’s “anything but conventional” homes

The door knockers – 20 or so of them – are peppered across the inside of the oversize metal doors to the super lobby. The Paul Smith-style striped post boxes sit atop Dr Martens-bedecked poles in a blindingly baby pink post room. There’s a ridiculously huge mirror ball spinning and refracting light above the reception desk. The chairs float.

This is The Robinson. It’s the latest building in Wembley Park from Quintain Living, the award-winning management company that oversees the rental of more than 2,500 homes in the area. It’s also the quirkiest building to date from a company known for its innovative and inspirational residences.

The curious mixture of familiarity and the unexpected grips residents the moment they walk into The Robinson. Timber panelling in the super lobby provides a sense of comfort, while the wallpaper would be perfectly at home in your grandma’s house. There are translucent curtains laying over the wallpaper, creating a sense of theatre and contradiction, while music plays from massive speakers. That music flows around residents as they move throughout the building, with speakers in the podium garden and on the rooftop, as well as indoors.

The Robinson’s other lobbies add fringed pendant lights, contrasting coloured wallpaper and concrete benches with bright cushions to the warmth of the timber panelling, while corridors deliver Caribbean-style patterned carpets and individually painted front doors in a variety of colours. All with grandmother-style wired lampshades floating above.