Architecture firm Snøhetta has created a library-informed respite from the digital world with A Better Place to Think, an Oslo pop-up shop for tablet brand reMarkable.
Located just off the city’s main shopping street, the temporary store was made to showcase the brand’s tablet, which has a paper-like surface.
Snøhetta looked to libraries for the design, which features divided timber desks, leather banquets and small domed reading lamps.
The Norwegian studio wanted to encourage contemplation and concentration through the spatial qualities of the pop-up.
“In today’s fast-paced and digitalised society, finding places for focused thinking can be a challenge,” Snøhetta founder Kjetil Trædal Thorsen told Dezeen.
“For the reMarkable pop-up store, we wanted to echo the serene environments of libraries – the clean and open spaces, somber aesthetics, tidy structures, and focused reading zones.”
A Better Place to Think features two concentric rings of desks and seating, with the inner ring made up entirely of standing desks and the outer ring featuring blocks of seated desks, benches and sofas.
A handmade light installation overhead was inspired by the energy and movement of a line of handwriting.
The walls and ceiling are painted in a “calm and sober” dark blue, with white acoustic panels and shelving covering most of the wall space.
The matt finishes across the walls, panels and on the bespoke oak furniture are meant to echo the material qualities of paper.
The design of the pop-up aims to emphasise the enduring value of bricks-and-mortar shopping.
“Although consumers are becoming increasingly digital in their shopping habits, especially during the pandemic, we see the value of letting our customers experience that ‘wow’ moment of writing on one of our paper tablets for the very first time,” said reMarkable founder and CEO Magnus Wanberg.
Founded in 1989, Snøhetta has offices around the world.
Its recently completed buildings include the shimmering Le Monde Group Headquarters in Paris and the El Paso Children’s Museum, which has a barrel-vaulted roof resembling a cloud.
Photography is by Calle Huth.
Source: Rooms - dezeen.com
