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    Shiftspace brings IM Pei rowhouse in Philadelphia back to “original vision”

    US studio Shiftspace has renovated a rowhouse in Philadelphia originally designed by Chinese-American architect IM Pei, restoring its original qualities after decades of alterations.

    Designed by Pei as part of a row of houses in the 1950s, the three-storey unit in the Society Hill neighbourhood had undergone several renovations and extensions over the years.
    Shiftspace was tasked with paring back these alterations to restore Pei’s original vision while enhancing it with contemporary details.
    Shiftspace has renovated an IM Pei-designed rowhouse in Philadelphia”Understanding Pei’s original vision for these houses, we approached this project with a sense of reverence that allowed us to see our design as enhancements to that original vision rather than starting from a blank canvas,” said Shiftspace partner Tim Barnes.
    Rowhouses are common in Philadelphia and sometimes referred to colloquially as “rowhomes”. Much of the city’s housing of this typology was built in the late-18th and early-19th centuries.

    According to Shiftspace, Pei designed the Society Hill townhouses to “bridge the gap” between these brick rowhomes and his nearby condominium, Society Hill Towers.
    It was originally built in the 1950sThe original exterior of the home has been retained. It consists of a mostly brick facade punctuated at the street-facing side by a large window with a small steel balcony.
    At the top of the home is a band of concrete-framed clerestory windows.
    Wooden louvres replace wallsInside, a central staircase that reaches from the basement to the third storey is essential to the redesign. Cleaving to Pei’s vision, Shiftspace has reoriented the home around this spiral stair and introduced a series of open-concept living spaces.
    The updated floorplans follow a typical format, with public spaces on the first three floors and three bedrooms on the fourth.
    At ground level, a curved breakfast nook with banquet seating leads to a kitchen that sits between the central staircase and a wall, and back into a dining area that has access to a garden patio. Here, some solid walls have been replaced with wooden louvres.
    The home is oriented around a spiral staircaseAbove are a living room and a study, separated by the staircase, as well as rearranged bedrooms and bathrooms.
    Two of the bedrooms on the top floor share a bathroom, while the main sleeping space has an ensuite. The bathrooms are tucked into spaces attached to the central core.
    “Our design reverted back to Pei’s original concept using a centralized core for all circulation, bath and mechanical spaces while reconfiguring for a master suite, kitchen, and entry area,” said founding partner Mario Gentile.

    “With IM Pei’s death, the last of the modern monument makers has passed”

    The studio added a new frame to the oculus at the top of the staircase that circulates additional light to the largely windowless structure. It also added skylights to the bedrooms.
    Minimising divides between rooms also allowed for further circulation throughout the home and for more light to penetrate the lower levels from the oculus.
    Shiftspace wanted to honour Pei’s original visionThe design was geared towards a more active lifestyle, which led to the addition of bike storage tucked away into nooks in the basement and on the ground floor.
    Shiftspace completed the renovation with a light-toned colour palette for the more public spaces and darker hues for the bedrooms and study.
    Pei was born in Guangzhou, China in 1917 and emigrated to the United States in 1935, where he founded a studio today known as Pei Cobb Freed & Partners. He designed a number of noteworthy buildings including Dallas City Hall and the Grand Louvre pyramid in Paris.
    Other buildings of his to be renovated include the Eskenazi Museum in Indiana.

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    MRDK uses arches and mosaics for Ciele Athletics store in Montreal

    Rounded walls and archways create a flow through this Montreal boutique, designed by local studio MRDK for Canadian sportswear brand Ciele Athletics.

    The first boutique for Ciele, which sells technical headwear and apparel for running, opened in April 2023 on Notre-Dame Street in Montreal – the brand’s hometown.
    Black and white mosaic tiles form a pattern based on Ciele’s apparel at the entrance to the storeThe 3,000-square-foot (279-square-metre) flagship store was designed by MRDK to be as much a boutique as a community space for runners to meet and socialise.
    Along the narrow entryway, flooring comprises black and white mosaic tiles that form a graphic pattern based on select items of the brand’s apparel.
    Visitors are lead past a quartet of mannequins to a community lounge areaAscending four steps or a ramp leads visitors past a large white-tiled planter, then a display of mannequins lined up in front of a brick wall.

    A lounge area at the end is designated for gathering and conversation, offering “anyone with an interest in movement and connection a chance to experience running and the many facets of its dynamic community through regular meet-ups and events”, said MRDK.
    Access to the main retail space is via an archway that punctures a dark green partitionAccess to the main retail space is through an archway with rounded corners that punctures a deep, dark green partition.
    “An arched wall gracefully separates the more public community area from the rest of the store, creating a sense of intrigue and inviting exploration,” MRDK said.
    The green hue continues behind the fluted white service counterOther similar openings in this spatial divider are used to display clothing on single or double-stacked rails.
    The same forest green shade continues on the wall behind the service counter, which is fronted by a white fluted panel and includes a small glass vitrine set into its top.
    Lime plaster covers the angled walls, which feature bull-nose edges that soften their appearanceHerringbone white oak parquet floors are laid wall to wall, running beneath a low central island that is designed to be broken apart and moved around the store depending on merchandising needs.
    A textured lime plaster finish was applied to the walls, wrapping around the bull-nosed corners that soften the angles created by the offset displays.

    MRDK creates a “journey through nature” at Attitude boutique in Montreal

    “The play of light and shadows on these textured surfaces creates a sense of dynamism, accentuating the uniqueness of the space,” said MRDK.
    In one corner, a 12-foot-tall (3.7-metre) shelving system presents Ciele’s range of hats on cork mannequin heads.
    A tall shelving system displays Ciele’s hat collectionFitting rooms at the back of the store are kept minimal, with green velvet curtain draped behind the arched openings to the cubicles.
    “The thoughtful combination of materials, textures, and colours creates an atmosphere that seamlessly blends modernity with a touch of timeless elegance,” said MRDK.
    The fitting rooms are kept minimalist and feature green velvet curtainsFormerly known as Ménard Dworkind, the studio was founded by Guillaume Ménard and David Dworkind, and has completed a variety of retail spaces in Montreal and beyond.
    Most recently, these have included a store for plastic-free beauty brand Attitude.
    The photography is by David Dworkind and Alex Lesage.
    Project credits:
    Team: David Dworkind, Benjamin Lavoie LarocheContractor: Groupe ManovraCeramic floor tile: DaltileLighting: SistemaluxLime plaster: VenosaWood profiles: Brenlo

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    Eight welcoming wood-panelled dining rooms

    For our latest lookbook, we’ve selected eight dining rooms from the Dezeen archive where wooden panelling was used to create cosy, earthy environments with an organic feel.

    From South America to Europe, these wood-panelled dining rooms serve as focal points in the interiors and create social spaces for residents and guests.
    Whether they’re made from timber, pine or plywood, the wooden finishes on these statement walls and ceilings have been used to create welcoming environments with peaceful atmospheres.
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring homes with focal point wardrobes, statement headboards and homes with pergolas.
    Photography is by Fran Parente and image production is by Victor CorreaER Apartment, Brazil, Pascali Semerdjian Arquitetos

    This apartment in São Paulo has an exposed concrete ceiling and uses natural materials, such as walnut, bronze, onyx and stone in its furnishings and finishes.
    Pascali Semerdjian Arquitetos used vertical timber cladding, local art and furniture by Brazilian architects and designers Oscar Niemeyer and Claudia Moreira Salles in the dining room to make the space “deeply Brazilian and vividly cosmopolitan”.
    Find out more about ER Apartment ›
    Photography is by Eric PetschekCarroll Gardens Townhouse, US, Starling Architecture and Emily Lindberg Design
    Starling Architecture and Emily Lindberg Design combined two units in a Brooklyn townhouse to create this family home. The townhouse features Belgian white oak on the flooring and along the corridor, stairs, mudroom, kitchen and dining area.
    The New York-based studios used neutral tones to decorate the five-story house. In the dining room, wooden cabinets and decorative lamellas match the floor and ceiling.
    Find out more about Carroll Gardens Townhouse ›
    Photography is by Tim CrokerDragon Flat, UK, Tsuruta Architects
    Artificial intelligence (AI) was used to design the patterns engraved on plywood panels that decorate the dining room of the Dragon Flat in London’s Notting Hill. Tsuruta Architects used a CNC router – a computer-controlled cutting machine – to engrave a pattern of the River Thames on the wall.
    The architecture studio also updated the two-level maisonette to include a walk-in wardrobe and tatami room, which features an engraved design on its panelled walls.
    Find out more about Dragon Flat ›
    Photography is by David GrandorgeHomerton College, UK, Feilden Fowles
    Homerton College at the University of Cambridge includes a dining hall by London architecture studio Feilden Fowles made from concrete, timber and 3,200 faience tiles.
    The building, which was constructed with chestnut-laminated timber frames and clerestory windows, features a larger eating space, a smaller eating room, the kitchen and staff amenities.
    It was designed to celebrate handcrafting techniques and contemporary construction and engineering.
    Find out more about Homerton College ›
    Photography is by Roland HalbeHouse in El Peumo, Chile, Cristián Izquierdo Lehmann
    This house, designed by Cristián Izquierdo Lehmann, centres around an open-plan kitchen and dining room with a vaulted ceiling that is used for cooking, dining and socialising.
    A minimalist decor compliments the dramatic ceiling, with red stools used for dining and a bookcase lining the wall.
    Located in El Peumo, Chile, the house was clad with laminated pine and features concrete floors and large windows for the owners to enjoy the green exterior.
    Find out more about House in El Peumo ›

    Another Seedbed, US, Future Projects
    The Another Seedbed loft in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, serves as both a home and performance space for its owner. To function as both, the space is predominately open, with hidden rooms located around the apartment.
    Warm pine walls mark the dining space, which features a complementary red angular table and wooden sculptural chairs.
    Other walls in the loft are covered in hand-troweled earthen clay plaster, blue penny-round tiles and floor-to-ceiling shelving.
    Find out more about Another Seedbed ›
    Photography is by Art GrayStone Creek Camp, US, Andersson-Wise Architects
    US-based Andersson-Wise Architects designed the Stone Creek Camp in Big Fork, Montana, as a family retreat of cabins and cottages.
    While it is wood-clad, the kitchen and dining area does not feature traditional panelled walls. Instead, one wall is made from wooden logs that have been assembled to create an unusual wall with a highly textured surface.
    The ceiling was clad in wooden panels that match the floorboards in the home.
    Find out more about Stone Creek Camp ›
    Photography is by Marc GoodwinGeilo Valley Cabin, Norway, Lund Hagem
    Panelled with blackened timber, this Norwegian ski cabin shelters residents from harsh weather conditions and offers panoramic views of the Geilo Valley. The cabin’s exterior concrete walls have also been tinted black to reflect the interior panels.
    The walls and ceiling of the dining room use the same timber cladding, matching the kitchen island to create a cosy, coherent atmosphere.
    “The dark tone allows the nature outside to come closer and creates a darkness that contrasts with the white winter landscape,” said the project’s architects Lund Hagem.
    Find out more about Geilo Valley Cabin ›
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring homes with focal point wardrobes, statement headboards and homes with pergolas.

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    Trellick Tower apartment revamped in line with Japanese design principles

    German interior designer Peter Heimer and joinery studio Buchholzberlin used a restrained material palette of concrete, oak and aluminium when renovating this flat inside London’s brutalist Trellick Tower.

    The Grade II-listed building, designed by architect Ernö Goldfinger, originally opened in 1972 to provide social housing for the neighbourhood of Kensal Rise but has since become a landmark of brutalist architecture thanks to its distinctive lift tower.
    Peter Heimer and Buchholzberlin have renovated a Trellick Tower flatThe renovation works were carried out in a privately owned apartment on Trellick Tower’s 21st floor that had not been significantly altered in several years and as a result, was host to narrow rooms and lacklustre white walls.
    Its owners wanted the open up the 86-square-metre floorplan to create the impression of a “cool concrete loft” while offering better views of the surrounding cityscape.
    Views of the London skyline took centre stage”Their taste was also trained by contemporary Japanese design, so they wanted to use a reduced range of pure materials,” Buchholzberlin told Dezeen.

    “Since Trellick Tower is subject to strict preservation requirements, our hands were tied so to speak. But we were able to push through with small improvements.”
    Oak was used to form the kitchen’s cabinetry and breakfast counterThe wall separating two former children’s bedrooms was knocked through to create a larger unified space that now serves as the living area.
    The team also exposed the building’s original concrete walls, laid oak flooring and installed slender aluminium lights across the ceiling.
    A bench seat with inbuilt storage boxes was fitted beneath a row of windows at the front of the room, allowing for uninterrupted vistas of northwest London and beyond.
    A pull-out guest bed is concealed within the desk in the studyThe two doors that previously led to the respective children’s bedrooms were left in place. Between them now stands a huge, double-faced oak sideboard.
    An inlaid mirrored panel reflects the distant skyline and in turn “brings an impression of the city into the apartment’s centre”, according to the team.

    “We couldn’t stop Balfron Tower from being privatised. In fact we probably helped it along”

    More concrete and oakwood surfaces can be seen in the kitchen, which occupies the former living area. Low-lying cabinetry was installed along the room’s back wall, while a large breakfast counter was placed at its centre.
    The counter was custom-built to stand at the exact same height as the railing of the apartment’s balcony, ensuring that sightlines aren’t compromised when the clients sit down to eat.
    The desk also discretely hides new water pipesThe former kitchen, meanwhile, was converted into a study with an oakwood desk snaking around the edges of the room.
    Its base conceals a network of water pipes that had to be redirected to serve appliances in the new cooking quarters. One side of the desk also conceals a pull-out bed that can be used when guests come to stay.
    An oak headboard wraps around the principal bedroomThe principal bedroom was left in its original place but – like the rest of the apartment – was stripped back to expose its concrete walls.
    Oakwood was used here to form the base of the bed and its lengthy headboard, which extends along the lower half of the walls.
    Heimer and Buchholzberlin also removed the time-worn laminate that once covered the small flight of stairs leading down from the apartment’s entrance, revealing the concrete steps beneath.
    Concrete steps were revealed in the apartment’s hallwayTrellick Tower is just one example of the striking council estates that can be found across the British capital, which were recently chronicled in a book by photographer Jack Young.
    Others include Holmefield House with its graphic tiled facade and the Brunel Estate, which has a monumental slide sweeping through its public pathways.
    The photography is by Heiko Prigge.

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    Penthouse at Richard Rogers-designed New York tower overlooks City Hall Park

    A penthouse has been unveiled inside British architecture firm RSHP’s first residential project in New York City: a tower overlooking City Hall Park in Lower Manhattan.

    With interiors by local studio Ash Staging, Penthouse 3 is one of 30 residences within No 33 Park Row, which was designed by RSHP’s late founder, Pritzker Architecture Prize-winning architect Richard Rogers, before his death in 2021.
    Penthouse 3 at No 33 Park Row boasts 15-foot (4.5-metre) ceilingsFrom the 23-storey tower, the 5,403-square-foot (502-square-metre) penthouse has an unobstructed view of the Manhattan park, and features dark-coloured steel framing intended to reference the area’s industrial-era buildings.
    Visible through the huge windows are the building’s copper fins, an architectural element similar to the firm’s previous residential buildings such as One Hyde Park in London.
    The corner residence boasts views of City Hall through huge windows”One Hyde Park and 33 Park Row each face a park to the north and exhibit a similarity in terms of aspiration and quality with carefully composed facades that exhibit a richness of depth, shadow and texture,” said studio partner Graham Stirk, who worked alongside Rogers on the building.

    The penthouse interior features a double-height, open-plan living area that wraps around the huge north-facing windows to form an L shape.
    A staircase with glass balustrades connects to the upper levelTwo generously sized seating areas are positioned on either side of a 10-person dining table in the corner, while an adjacent bar area can be hidden away behind folding pocket doors.
    Above the grey marble kitchen is a grand wood-panelled storage and display wall that extends all the way up to the ceiling, with high shelves accessible via a rolling ladder as well as the mezzanine corridor.
    Each of the five bedrooms features a different aestheticA metal staircase with glass balustrades doglegs around a curved platform to reach the upper level, where a workspace is located on the glass-edged balcony.
    Five bedrooms all have tall ceilings but are decorated with different detailing. One is entirely neutral-toned, while another features pale teal walls, blue upholstery and rug, and copper table lamps.

    One Wall Street skyscraper completes conversion from offices to apartments

    In the 5.5 baths, richly veined book-matched Montclair Danby marble patterns the walls and floors, and an outdoor terrace measuring 108 square feet (10 square metres) has a wooden deck that echoes some of the millwork inside.
    The penthouse’s eventual residents will also have access to the fifth-floor amenities, which include an indoor/outdoor fitness centre and yoga studio, an outdoor kitchenette and dining area, as well as a rooftop terrace, library, craft studio, screening room and bike storage.
    Richly veined, book-matched Montclair Danby marble features in the bathroomsFounded as Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, the firm rebranded as RSHP in June 2022 following Rogers’ death. It has since revealed designs for “open and welcoming” Shenzhen skyscraper.
    The studio’s other projects in New York City include the 80-storey Three World Trade Center, which was completed in 2018 not far from No 33 Park Row.
    Dark-coloured steel framing on the exterior is intended to reference Lower Manhattan’s industrial-era buildingsOnce almost exclusively occupied by commercial property, Manhattan’s Financial District is becoming increasingly residential.
    Some of the existing offices towers are being converted into homes, like the recently opened One Wall Street, while new skyscrapers like David Adjaye’s newly completed 130 William are purpose-built for living.
    The photography is by Evan Joseph.

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    Eight pared-back kitchens with minimalist storage solutions

    Sometimes the simple solutions are the best, as seen in this lookbook featuring tidy kitchen interiors where minimalist closed cabinets are combined with decorative materials.

    In these kitchens, found in homes from Sweden to Mexico, architects and designers largely chose simple storage solutions but added material interest in the form of marble, steel and brick details.
    By hiding utensils and crockery away, benches and kitchen islands are freed up to use for food preparation. In some of these kitchens, open shelves above the work areas also provide spaces to hold decorative plates, bowls and cookbooks.
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring homes where the wardrobe is the focal point, bedrooms with statement headboards and homes with pergolas.
    Photo by Lorenzo ZandriSteele’s Road House, UK, by Neiheiser Argyros

    The original brickwork was uncovered in parts of this London flat, including in the kitchen where it forms the backdrop to the room’s minimalist cabinets.
    Pale-wood cupboards sit underneath the brick wall, which also features shelves to add more storage.
    Designers Neiheiser Argyros added a curved window seat, as well as a wooden kitchen table and stool to match the cabinets and give the room a more natural feel.
    Find out more about Steele’s Road House ›
    Photo by Giulio GhirardiHausmann apartment, France, by Rodolphe Parente
    This Parisian apartment in a 19th-century Haussmann building in Paris was given an overhaul by interior designer Rodolphe Parente, who took cues from the owner’s art collection.
    In the kitchen, stainless steel cabinets were used to form storage and workspaces, creating an industrial feel that is tempered by pastel-pink walls.
    “The kitchen is a deconstructed block sitting in the Haussmanian environment,” Parente told Dezeen. “It is connected to the historical elements through its composition.”
    Find out more about the Hausmann apartment ›
    Photo by Scott NorsworthyHouse M, Canada, by Studio Vaaro
    Studio Vaaro used oak cabinetry for the kitchen of this home in Canada, while matching oak shelving provides additional storage above the workspaces.
    To contrast the warm wood, the studio chose grey marble for the countertops and splashbacks, which gives the kitchen an organic feel. Additional storage can be found in the pale grey cabinets that frame the kitchen.
    Find out more about House M ›
    Photo by Edmund DabneyLondon apartment, UK, by Holloway Li
    A kitchen clad in circle-brushed stainless steel clads one wall in this London flat by local studio Holloway Li. Designed in reference to the city’s many fish-and-chip shops, it features a striking curved splashback.
    Above the workspaces, a built-in open shelf provides space to store glasses and cooking utensils, with the rest of the storage is hidden behind patterned-steel cabinet doors.
    Find out more about London apartment ›
    Photo by Ronan MézièreMontreal apartment, Canada, by Naturehumanie
    Fresh minty hues decorate the kitchen of this Montreal apartment, which was given a modern update while retaining many of its traditional details.
    The green colour matches that of the apartment’s existing stained glass doors. And the kitchen island and cabinets both have inviting curved forms, finished in a glossy paint that complements the rougher tiles above the counters.
    Find out more about the Montreal apartment ›
    Photo by Gareth HackerHighbury House, UK, by Daytrip
    Located in Highbury in north London, this home juxtaposes a gallery-like minimalism with more organic forms.
    This is evident in the kitchen, where pared-back storage cabinets in an unusual rectangular shape sit underneath a decorative marble countertop.
    Sculptural vases, plates and cooking utensils decorate the matching marble kitchen island as well as a small ledge that functions as both storage and display counter.
    Find out more about Highbury House ›
    Photo by Yoshihiro MakinoEastern Columbia Loft, US, by Sheft Farrace
    Architecture studio Sheft Farrace renovated this flat, which is located in the iconic art deco Eastern Columbia building in Los Angeles, creating minimalist interiors that draw on the building’s exterior.
    In the kitchen, this can be seen in the curved corners of the counters and the elongated cabinet hardware, which reference 1930s design. Florida Brush quartzite was used to cover much of the kitchen, adding a striking decorative detail that is complemented by white oak.
    Find out more about Eastern Columbia Loft ›
    Photo courtesy of Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen of Norm ArchitectsArchipelago House, Sweden, by Norm Architects
    Danish studio Norm Architects designed this home on the west coast of Sweden to embody both Scandinavian and Japanese aesthetics.
    In the white-walled kitchen, a stainless-steel kitchen island offers both a practical workspace and cupboards for storage. Open wood shelving was decorated with black ceramics to create an art installation-style feature on one wall.
    Find out more about Archipelago House ›
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring homes where the wardrobe is the focal point, bedrooms with statement headboards and homes with pergolas.

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    André Fu designs colourful Casetify shop in Japan informed by shoji lanterns

    Hong Kong-based architect and interior designer André Fu has completed the first global flagship store for electronic accessory brand Casetify in Osaka, combining traditional Japanese shoji paper lanterns with bright colours.

    The store, which marks the first retail project by Fu in Japan, was informed by the urban landscape of the Shinsaibashi neighbourhood in Osaka where the store is located.
    The store is located in Shinsaibashi, the main shopping area in OsakaAccording to Fu, the interiors aim to bring “the allure of the dynamic Shinsaibashi neighbourhood into the store”.
    “The overall concept is rooted in a vision to celebrate the distinct context of the project with contrasting shapes and forms, capturing the neighbourhood’s cinematic streetscape in a world where bold geometries juxtapose against each other,” said Fu.
    Curved shoji screens form the product display wallThe storefront was designed as a floor-to-ceiling shoji lantern framed in bright orange. Customers are greeted by a round display table encircled by cylindrical shoji screens, with the same circular arrangement mirrored at the back of the store and its upper floor.

    At the centre of the Casetify store sit cabinets that have been decorated with old phone cases, donated by customers in the recycling box located next to them.
    A secret shoji window at the rear of the ground floor can be slid open to unveil customised online purchases.

    André Fu outfits apartment in Jean Nouvel’s MoMA tower

    “A lot of my work is rooted in the idea of a journey that takes the contextual quality of each project into an architectural medium,” Fu explained.
    “The world of shoji lanterns that goes around you, that folds and unfolds, creates that effect,” he added.
    “It transports you from the everyday reality of the neighbourhood to an imaginary, illusionistic expression that blends a relaxed sense of luxury with the popping Casetify colours that the brand is so well known for.”
    Cabinets are covered with materials made from recycled phone casesFu is known for his work on luxury hotels and restaurants, including the Upper House hotel in Hong Kong, the Berkeley London, and the Mitsui hotel in Kyoto.
    More recently, he created a two-person “conversation” chair in collaboration with Louis Vuitton’s Objects Nomades, and furnished a model apartment inside the Jean Nouvel tower in New York with his homeware collection.
    The photography is courtesy of Casetify.

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    Roar recreates dizzying Indian stepwells in Jaipur Rugs’ Dubai showroom

    UAE-based studio Roar has paid homage to the Escher-esque stepwells of India in its interior design for Jaipur Rugs’ showroom in Dubai, which features cascading, rainbow-coloured staircases.

    The Jaipur Rugs showroom, the Indian brand’s first in the Middle East, is located in the creative district of Aserkal, in one of the former industrial area’s previously abandoned warehouses.
    Roar’s design for the space nods to the architecture of Jaipur, the rug manufacturer’s home city, and in particular its famous stepwells — reservoirs built with staggered terraces and dizzying sets of stairs all the way down into their depths.
    The Jaipur Rugs Dubai showroom is designed with reference to India’s stepwells”The design concept was born from a simple sketch that I did after my first meeting with the client,” Roar founder and architect Pallavi Dean told Dezeen.
    “I was so inspired by the stepwells that I’d seen in Jaipur during my first visit that I wanted to bring them to life in my design,” she added.

    “I wanted to strip the idea to its bare minimum though, and work within its architectural purity, in order to avoid any plain pastiche.”
    The stairs are carpeted in a gradient of rainbow huesIn Dean’s design, the repeating staircases feature across three of the walls, making a striking impression in the double-height space while connecting the ground-floor browsing area to the offices and sales suites on the mezzanine.
    The arches that are typical to stepwells also feature in the 780-square-metre showroom, forming doorways or alcoves wallpapered with decorative rugs.
    The hues in these rug displays are echoed in the carpet on the stairs, which is rendered in a jewel-toned rainbow colour gradient starting at indigo on one side of the space and ending in ruby red.
    Some of the stairs read to alcoves with rug displaysDean called the construction of the staircases a “structural feat” that required navigating challenging approval processes.
    “We had to ensure the steps were safe to use by installing a glass balustrade, which gives the impression that they’re floating when they’re actually carefully enclosed!” she said.

    Kasturi Balotia’s first original rug is “the future of design”

    Also nestled between the staircases on the ground floor are two rooms described as immersive experiences, the Sapphire and Emerald rooms, which are covered floor to ceiling with rugs custom-made by Jaipur Rugs’ weavers as part of the brand’s Manchaha intiative.
    In the project, the artisans design the rugs themselves spontaneously on the loom as they weave, using leftover yarn from the industry.
    Two “immersive” rooms are carpeted in rugs designed by Jaipur Rugs’ weaversThey would typically use a broader range of colours for the rugs in this series, but were briefed to work with emerald and sapphire tones for the showroom and given the precise dimensions.
    The lack of sound in these rooms, created by the acoustic properties of the rugs, adds a dramatic dimension to visitors’ experience, according to Dean.
    One room is emerald and the other is sapphire huedNext to the rooms, along the fourth wall, is the showroom’s rug library, with custom-made sliding panels allowing visitors to browse freely.
    The walls and floors are finished with a warm-grey micro-cement and textured paint, forming a neutral base for the colourful features.
    Metallic rose gold features in doorframes, cabinetry and other details, in another reference to Jaipur, which is sometimes called the Pink City.
    Metallic rose gold touches nod to Jaipur’s nickname of the “Pink City””All of our designs come from a place of empathy, and this one is no exception,” Dean said. “We always endeavour to understand what the client is trying to achieve – here, the client was trying to create a bold statement for their first flagship store in the Middle East.”
    “It also had to be an experiential space, which can be intuitively navigated by its users. This is why, for example, we decided to build bespoke rug libraries with sliding doors for clients to flick through instead of having the rugs stacked on the floor, which, in my opinion, are so inconvenient to browse!”
    The showroom is located in a formerly abandoned warehouseDean founded Roar in 2013. The studio’s past projects include the interiors for cafe Drop Coffee and the Nursery of the Future, both in Dubai.
    Last year it announced it was expanding into digital design after purchasing two plots of land for a showroom in the metaverse.

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