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    Side Angle Side transforms mid-century Austin post office into restaurant

    Texas architecture studio Side Angle Side has adapted a 1960s post office into a food market and restaurant in Austin.

    Opened in October 2023 in the Hyde Park area, Tiny Grocer serves as a speciality market, bar and cafe while Bureau de Poste is a modern French bistro led by celebrity chef Jo Chan.
    Side Angle Side has transformed a 1960s post office into a food market and restaurantAustin-based commercial and residential architecture firm Side Angle Side renovated the 3,500-square foot (325-square metre) 1967 US Post Office building and added a 1,500-square foot (140-square metre) outdoor dining patio.
    “The Hyde Park U.S. Post Office was an important neighborhood hub in the 1960s – so we were especially careful to keep the integrity and spirit of the mid-century-utilitarian design,” Arthur Furman, founding partner of Side Angle Side, told Dezeen.
    The team sought to preserve the building’s history as a community hub”As the anchor tenant in the space, Tiny Grocer continues to be the centre of the community, a place to gather, shop, eat and drink.”

    The shell of the white brick building was left intact, but the street-facing facade was previously used as a loading dock so the team transformed the back-of-house edge into a welcoming patio for the neighbourhood by removing the asphalt and adding two large live oak trees and a steel trellis and planters.
    The exterior of the building was kept intactA cast-in-place concrete banquette holds the edge of the patio that is paved with antique red brick.
    The steel planter forms a boundary between the parking area and the dining space, while the other edge is held by a light grey-coloured stucco restroom building. White metal furniture from Isimar and Portofino was used to furnish the patio.
    “The patio and wine garden is the real heart of the project,” the team said, mentioning that it wasn’t within the original scope of the project but added later when its larger value was realized. “This is where all the care and thought of the interior spills to the outside, creating a lively environment.”
    The renovated building has exposed concrete floors from the original buildingOn the interior, Side Angle Side complemented the original ceiling and open web joists with metal decking and industrial warehouse pendants by AQ Lighting. The polished concrete floors expose the weathered imperfections and show the history of the building.
    Upon entering, shoppers take in the colourful selection of curated products displayed on white oak mercantile shelving. Green millwork hugs one wall and the space widens to an open interior plan.
    A patio and wine garden is at the heart of the projectA central deli and coffee bar floats in the middle of the room and creates a transition from the market to the bistro. The bar is wrapped in Seneca terracotta tile and topped with grey and white quartz countertops. Wooden Soule barstools are tucked under the waterfall counter.
    The back-of-house spaces hold a kitchen office, storage, and bar equipment.

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    “Working closely with the owner, design finishes hint at the building’s midcentury past,” the team said, referencing the custom, built-in leather banquette by Undercover Austin Upholstery that lines the bistro’s back wall.
    Above the banquette and Second Chance Custom wooden dining tables hang black cone light pendants by All Modern.
    The patio features brick flooring and white metal furniture”The single biggest sustainable feature of this project is one that is often overlooked,” the team said, noting the adaptation of the structure. “The ‘loose fit, long life’ style of these old buildings leads to more reuse and far less waste.”
    Recent adaptive reuse projects in Austin include a 1900s house converted to a luxury office by Michael Hsu and commercial units converted to an architecture studio by Baldridge Architects.
    The photography is by Likeness Studio and Mackenzie Smith Kelly.
    Project credits:
    Structural engineer: Creative EngineeringMEP engineer: ATS EngineersBuilder: Archive PropertiesCommercial interior design: Side Angle SideArchitects: Side Angle SideBuilding shell: Thought Barn StudioLandscape design: Side Angle Side & Wild Heart DirtOwner: Steph Steele

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    PSLab’s monochromatic Berlin showroom is a “sacred place for light”

    A pared-back palette of raw materials creates a calm backdrop for PSLab’s lighting products inside the brand’s Berlin workshop and showroom space, designed in collaboration with Belgian firm B-bis architecten.

    The newly opened studio occupies the ground floor and basement of a 1907 residential building in the city’s Charlottenburg district.
    PSLab has opened a new workshop and showroom in BerlinPSLab, which designs and manufactures light fixtures for architectural projects, set out to create a showroom where customers can experience lighting effects in a home-like environment.
    “PSLab is not a digital platform where clients pick and buy products,” the company’s founder Dimitri Saddi told Dezeen. “Therefore the physical space as a ‘home’ is most important for one-on-one communication.”
    “In Berlin, as with all our studios, we wanted to design a canvas to show the quality of our light and to show the process of our bespoke design approach by integrating a material library of endless opportunities and possibilities.”

    The space includes a materials library with a movable ladderWorking together with B-bis architecten, the design team looked to create a contemporary space that contrasts with Charlottenburg’s classical architecture whilst retaining references to common elements like colonnades, arches and symmetrical forms.
    The entrance takes the form of a large zinc-and-glass sliding door that is set into the facade of the building on Niebuhrstrasse. Moving the door aside reveals a full-height opening that welcomes visitors into the studio.
    The interior was designed to present the brand’s lighting to its best advantageInside, a double-height space with a six-metre-high ceiling allows lighting products to be hung in various heights and configurations.
    Arched openings on either side of the staircase void lead through to a garden room that looks onto a leafy courtyard. Daylight streams into the space through large windows to create a tranquil atmosphere.

    JamesPlumb converts Victorian tannery into London HQ for PSLab

    The workshop space includes a materials library where visitors can touch and explore the physical qualities of the brand’s lighting products. A movable ladder provides access to items on the library’s upper rows.
    The cosy basement level is a place for informal conversations with clients. A projector in this parlour space also allows the team to display the company’s extensive digital library.
    The basement serves as a cosy loungeThroughout the studio, PSLab chose materials and finishes including lime wash, concrete, zinc and textiles that focus attention on how the space is lit rather than its architectural features to create a kind of “sacred place for light”.
    “It is all about monochromatics and textures, which are specific to the location,” said Mario Weck, a partner at PSLab GmbH. “The atmosphere lets people focus on our approach.”
    Gantries provide support for various light sourcesOn the ceiling of both the front room and garden room is a grey-steel gantry that helps unify the spaces whilst supporting various light sources as well as technical elements, much like on a theatre stage.
    Furniture is mostly built in, with simple cushions providing casual seating while cylindrical wooden side tables and coffee tables offer somewhere to place a cup or catalogue.
    The showroom is set in Berlin’s CharlottenburgPSLab has studios in Antwerp, Bologna, London, Stuttgart and Beirut, where the firm originated. For its UK headquarters, the company commissioned JamesPlumb to convert a Victorian tannery into a space that evokes the “quiet brutalism” of the former industrial building.
    Previously, the lighting brand has collaborated with Parisian studio Tolila+Gilliland on the design of an Aesop store in London featuring felt-covered walls and slim black pendant lights.
    The photography is by Nate Cook.

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    Halleroed references Swedish Grace and Carlo Scarpa for Toteme flagship store

    Stockholm studio Halleroed has designed fashion brand Toteme’s flagship store in London, which features a sculpture by artist Carl Milles and a steel sofa by designer Marc Newson.

    Halleroed designed the store, located on Mount Street in the upmarket Mayfair area, together with Toteme founders Elin Kling and Karl Lindman. The duo wanted its third flagship to feature nods to the brand’s heritage.
    “We like the idea of keeping certain elements that we find in our Swedish heritage,” Lindman told Dezeen at the store’s launch event.
    “It can be by using certain vintage pieces, or like in [the brand’s Mercer Street store] in New York, we had a collaboration with Svenskt Tenn,” he added. “It’s about lifting this notion of Scandinavian design or Swedish design.”
    A metal sofa by Marc Newson is among the sculptural details in the storeHalleroed drew on the space itself when designing the interior, focussing on how the light falls.

    “We were inspired by the space itself with beautiful original windows letting the daylight in,” Halleored co-founder Ruxandra Halleroed told Dezeen.
    “The upper part of the windows was partly hidden, which was a shame, so we redesigned the ceiling with a half vault towards the front to show the full height of the windows.”
    A piece by sculptor Carl Milles sits by the entranceThe design also references the work of Italian architect Carlo Scarpa as well as the Swedish Grace movement.
    “We were also inspired by the Swedish Grace period – around 1920-30s – that has an elegant and pure design, something we think works well for Toteme as a brand,” Halleroed co-founder Christian Halleroed told Dezeen.
    “Also the work of Carlo Scarpa we find interesting, more as a mindset on how to work with details and textures to create a subtle elegance and luxury.”
    A black mirrored cube features at the rear of the storeKling and Lindman wanted to keep the feel of “very posh” Mount Street where the store is located, while also underlining the space’s minimalist feel.
    To do so, a lot of effort was put into the colour palette and different textured materials used for the flagship store.

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    “We worked with an off-white palette in different tones and different textures,” Ruxandra Halleroed said.
    “The textures are as important as colour and materials. For walls, we have a glossy, off-white stucco, ceiling in same colour but matte. The floor is in a beige, honed limestone with a so-called Opus pattern.”
    Halleroed chose to redesign the store’s ceiling to reveal its windowsIn the middle of the Toteme shop, Halleroed created a stone-clad cube that holds shelves, vitrines and niches filled with artworks.
    “The volume in the middle is clad with the same limestone, but in three different textures: honed, bush hammered and spiked texture, combined with oxidised dark brass,” Christian Halleroed said.
    The store also features a square black volume in the back made from high-gloss stucco and dark brass.
    The minimalist interior has a beige, white and black colour paletteTo contrast the minimalist interior, the store is decorated with multiple artworks, including a sculpture by Milles and Newson’s intricately woven steel Random Pak Twin sofa, which Lindman found online.
    “He’s a slave to auction houses,” Kling told Dezeen.
    “So he found it and sent it to me and I loved it, and we also have a Marc Newsom piece in every store,” she added. “So we thought, ‘this one’s for the Mount Street store’. At that time we only had the signed contract, nothing else.”
    The store is located on Mount Street in central LondonThe two founders and Halleroed decided on the gypsum Milles sculpture for the Toteme store together, with Halleroed designing a custom niche to place it in that is made from black high-gloss stucco to contrast the pale artwork.
    Halleroed also added vintage Swedish Grace furniture to the store, including armchairs and a coffee table by furniture designer Otto Schulz, a daybed and a mirror in pewter made for the Stockholm Exhibition 1930.
    The studio has designed a number of other store interiors, including a Paris boutique for French brand L/Uniform and an Acne Studios store in Chengdu that aimed to combine the futuristic and primitive.

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    Yellow lighting illuminates Le Père store in New York by BoND

    New York architecture studio BoND has used tubular lighting to create a bright yellow glow inside this men’s apparel store on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

    The first flagship for cult fashion label Le Père occupies a 1,000-square-foot (93-square-metre) corner unit on Orchard Street.
    The flagship store for Le Père is largely painted white to allow the bright clothing to stand outUtilising the store’s large exposure to the street, BoND opted to create an interior that would be just as impactful from the exterior as it is once inside.
    “BoND designed the store to feel like a canvas, highlighting the design elements of the clothes while ensuring the space is a place that creators feel encouraged to spend time in,” the team said.
    A central column is encased in a translucent yellow boxThe firm’s approach was to leave the majority of the space white, allowing the boldly patterned clothing to stand out, then highlighting the fitting rooms using bright yellow lighting and surfaces.

    A structural column in the centre of the store encased in a translucent box is also fitted with lights to give off a sunny glow.
    Yellow lighting installed in the fitting rooms emits an inviting glowThis yellow aura is immediately apparent from the street and is meant to entice passersby to step inside.
    Neon lighting has seen a resurgence in retail and other commercial interiors of the past year, appearing everywhere from a Brooklyn cafe to a Calgary chicken shop.
    The tube lights were installed on either side of mirrors in the fitting rooms, which are also yellowAt Le Père, other elements like the tops of vintage Artek furniture are coloured red and black, to borrow from the street signs across the neighbourhood.
    Floor-to-ceiling curtains along the back wall create a soft and neutral backdrop for the apparel, which is displayed on industrial metal racks.
    Custom furniture pieces were designed by BoND and fabricated by Lesser MiracleWide-plank wood floors are laid across the main shop floor, which doubles as a space for gatherings, conversations, exhibitions and events.
    Custom furniture pieces including a curved bench were designed by BoND and fabricated by Brooklyn design and art studio Lesser Miracle.

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    “The design scheme blurs the lines between a store, a home and an art studio – a space that is both aspirational and livable, combining contemporary and historic elements as a playful strategy,” said the studio.
    On the exterior, a generous portion of the facade is given over to a giant billboard that Le Père will use to present its seasonal visual campaigns and artwork by the brand’s collaborators.
    A large portion of the facade is given over to a billboard to display the brand’s campaignsThe debut placement for Fall/Winter 2023 was titled And Sometimes Boys and influenced by the work of Korean visual artist Nam June Paik.
    BoND was founded by Noam Dvir and Daniel Rauchwerger, who previously designed the global headquarters and showroom for the Brazilian brand PatBo in New York.
    The glow from the yellow lighting is designed to entice in shoppers on the Lower East Side. Photo by BoNDThe duo earlier overhauled an apartment in Chelsea for themselves, turning the dark, divided space into a light-filled home.
    The photography is by Stefan Kohli, unless stated otherwise.

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    Moroni Ciovini and Ana Montero expose textured concrete walls in Buenos Aires shop

    Local architecture studio Moroni Ciovini and designer Ana Montero have preserved the exposed layers of concrete wall for this bookstore and café in Buenos Aires.

    At just 247 square feet (23 square metres), Medio Pan cafe is just large enough to fit seating, a bar and bookshelves, which are located at the back and front of the store.
    Local studio Moroni++Ciovini and designer Ana Montero have completed a café and bookstore in Buenos AiresFor the shop’s interior, Moroni Ciovini (M++C) and Montero created a furniture unit of multilaminate guatambú wood that makes up the shop’s seating, bar and posterior bookshelf.
    A narrow bench runs along the length of the shop, facing the bar, so that visitors can get a closer look at the barista’s work, according to the team.
    The team preserved the original flooring and textured walls of the spaceStorage was integrated below the bench, while small wooden armrests were placed periodically and double as side tables.

    The seating runs directly into the bookshelf, which expands over the entrance to storage space at the back of the store. A chainlink fence extends from the top of the bookshelf to meet the ceiling.
    They created a wooden furniture system for the space that consists of seating, a bar and a bookshelfOn the opposite side of the bookshelf, a wider bench takes up the corner, providing a nook for visitors to more “calmly” enjoy a book.
    The cafe bar takes up the remaining space, with its front abutting the shop’s facade to double as a window counter.
    A soft green was used in tiles, paint, and textilesThe team created folding glass doors for the storefront, which can be arranged in a variety of positions. Small shelves were affixed to the doors, which display a changing parade of books held down by neon green elastic and small wooden pins.
    According to the team, the folding doors were created to evoke newsstands found throughout Buenos Aires.

    Florencia Rissotti uses curtains to organise Buenos Aires fabric shop

    The space was completed with soft green highlights, found in backsplash tile, cushioning and pillows that line the wooden seating, a curtain at the back of the store and Formica countertops.
    The layers and patterns of the textured concrete walls were kept largely preserved and covered with a transparent coating to display the space’s previous uses, while the team also decided to keep the original granite tile as a nod to the building’s history.
    The storefront was informed by newsstands found throughout Buenos AiresMoroni Ciovini is a Buenos Aires and Valencia-based architecture studio founded by Christian Moroni and Belén Ciovini.
    Elsewhere in Buenos Aires, designer Florencia Rissotti recently renovated a warehouse to host a fabric store and architects Julio Oropel and Jose Luis Zacarias Otiñano created a bio-art installation focused on fungi.
    The photography is by Fernando Schapochnik
    Project credits:
    Architecture: Moroni++Ciovini, Ana Montero Construction: Estudio KO

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    PlayLab Inc centres “space for conversation” in Los Angeles retail store

    LA studio PlayLab Inc has created a flagship store that contains a sky blue conversation pit at its centre for local clothing brand MadHappy.

    PlayLab Inc split the West Hollywood store into two distinct zones – one for retail space and the other for “intimate gathering spaces”, including a cafe and a courtyard.
    PlayLab Inc has created a flagship store for LA clothing brand MadHappy”Our collective goal with the design was to put space for conversation at the heart of the retail experience, creating a place that is equal parts for community dialogue and product,” PlayLab Inc co-founder Jeff Franklin told Dezeen.
    “To do this we split the space down the middle, making one half a clear utility for shopping and the other a collection of intimate gathering spaces.”
    The space was divided into separate zones for gathering and retailVisitors enter the 2,800-square-foot (260-square-metre) store through a glass facade, which leads into a large open space with powder blue concrete flooring running throughout.

    At the entrance, a blue bench emerges from a small exterior porch, while a boulder sits opposite.
    A cafe and courtyard were placed at the back of the storeTowards one side, the store contains a 70’s style conversation pit underneath a large skylight. Plush, sky-blue couches line the seating area, with satin aluminium side tables by Berlin-based studio New Tendency placed alongside them.
    Along an adjacent limewashed wall, the studio installed built-in shelving flanked by large custom wooden speakers by New York music studio designer Danny Keith Taylor of House Under Magic.
    The courtyard was populated with a single tree and green-stained plywood stools by Waka WakaThe social area leads into a small open-air courtyard populated by a single Tree Aloe installed by Cactus Store and green-stained plywood stools by LA studio Waka Waka.
    The same green plywood was used to line the takeout window of the store’s Pantry cafe, which sits in an enclosed corner and serves local and global cuisines from brands including Japanese-based café Hotel Drugs and LA bakery Courage Bagels.
    Custom signage was installed along the cafe’s takeout windowA custom lightbox and a large standing menu were installed next to the takeout window to display the cafe’s signage and goods.
    In the remaining interior, PlayLab Inc created a large metallic “retail bar” that spans the shop’s length for “open views of the product”, according to Franklin. The studio also dispersed custom Lego-like benches around the space, which were covered in a candy apple red gloss.
    The store will act as a retail space and venueFaux-stone stools and a bench were installed throughout the space.
    The store also contains a multimedia room, called the Local Optimist Space, a creative venue that will host audio and visual artwork.

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    “The design was inspired by the concept of conversation between things – a balance of scales, materials and textures,” said Franklin.
    This is the first flagship store for the clothing brand MadHappy, which previously operated from a host of pop-up concepts and stores.
    Local designers worked on furniture and other pieces for the store”From the beginning, physical retail has been essential to Madhappy and its success. We’ve always viewed our shops as spaces that go beyond something purely transactional – we want them to allow our community to engage with Madhappy beyond what’s possible digitally,” MadHappy co-founder Mason Spector said in a statement.
    Other recent projects by PlayLab Inc also include a plexiglass skatepark for Vans and a lifesize toy racetrack set for a Louis Vuitton menswear show.
    The photography is by Sean Davidson.

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    Buller and Rice salon is a showcase of plant-based materials

    East London hair salon Buller and Rice has opened a new venue with an interior design palette that includes seaweed, algae, cork and mushroom leather.

    Buller and Rice Wanstead is a salon that doubles as a lifestyle store, selling products ranging from homeware to wine.
    Company founders Anita Rice and Stephen Buller designed the interior themselves, filling it with bespoke creations from designers and makers including Natural Material Studio’s Bonnie Hvillum and Copenhagen-based Jonas Edvard.
    Buller and Rice Wanstead is a hair salon and lifestyle storeRice told Dezeen their ambition was to use as many plant-based materials as possible.
    “We wanted to deep dive into what could happen with plant matter,” she explained.

    The collaboration with Hvillum – who won the inaugural Bentley Lighthouse Award at Dezeen Awards 2023 – resulted in latex-like curtains made from a yellow algae-based material.
    The yellow-toned interior includes paper and seaweed lamps by Jonas EdvardEdvard’s contribution is a series of yellow pendant lamps made from recycled paper and seaweed, similar to those he previously made for Copenhagen burger joint, POPL.
    Rice said she spotted them by chance while enjoying a burger there. “When it turned out they were made from seaweed, I knew they were perfect,” she explained.
    Latex-like curtains by Natural Material Studio are made from algaeOther plant-based details include a cork wall and seat pads made from algae-based foam, while cushions made from mushroom leather will be added in early 2024.
    The space is also filled with plants, with many installed behind the front windows.
    Seat pads in the waiting area are made from algae foamBuller and Rice Wanstead is the third venue that the company has opened in east London, following salons in Hackney and Walthamstow.
    Rice said the project represents the latest step in a journey of exploration into eco-friendly materials.

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    Initially, they focused on simple natural materials like wood and cork. They then started experimenting with materials made from recycled waste products, including a sheet plastic made from yoghurt pots.
    “Our primary interest is in finding innovative and sustainable building materials that we can work into an aesthetically pleasing approach,” Rice said.
    Yellow tiles feature throughout the interiorThe renovation involved a complete refit of a former Chinese restaurant that had been shut down for years.
    A yellow colour scheme features throughout, marking a departure from the pink hues of the two other Buller and Rice salons.
    This shade can be found on bespoke concrete pieces created by London-based maker Smith & Goat, including an orthogonal reception desk, a wall-hung washbasin and the column-like legs of two styling stations.
    Plants can also be found throughout the spaceStainless steel features on both walls and surfaces, offering a utilitarian feel that contrasts the warmth of the yellow. “Practicality had a hand in that decision,” Rice admitted.
    The space is completed by custom-made barber chairs, frameless arch mirrors, yellow tiling and speckled vinyl flooring from manufacturer Tarkett.
    The photography is by Megan Taylor.

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    Space Projects creates Amsterdam store with thatched hut for Polspotten

    A curvilinear thatched hut has been paired with terracotta-hued tiles at the Amsterdam store for homeware brand Polspotten, which was designed by local studio Space Projects.

    The studio created the store to straddle a shop and an office for Polspotten, a furniture and home accessories brand headquartered in the Dutch capital.
    Visitors enter the Polspotten store via an oversized triangular entrancewayCharacterised by bold angles and arches, the outlet features distinctive terracotta-coloured walls and flooring that nod to traditional pots, Space Projects founder Pepijn Smit told Dezeen.
    “The terracotta-inspired colours and materials refer to the brand’s first product, ‘potten’ – or pots,” said Smit, alluding to the first Spanish pots imported by Erik Pol when he founded Polspotten in the Netherlands in 1986.
    The interconnected spaces are delineated by cutoutsLocated in Amsterdam’s Jordaan neighbourhood, the store was arranged across a series of open-plan rooms, interconnected by individual geometric entryways.

    Visitors enter at a triangular opening, which was cut away from gridded timber shelving lined with multicoloured pots that mimic totemic artefacts in a gallery.
    A curvilinear thatched hut provides a meeting spaceThe next space features a similar layout, as well as a plump cream sofa with rounded modules and sculptural pots stacked in a striking tower formation.
    Travelling further through the store, molten-style candle holders and Polspotten furniture pieces were positioned next to chunky illuminated plinths, which exhibit amorphously shaped vases finished in various coral-like hues.

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    Accessed through a rectilinear, terracotta-tiled opening, the final space features a bulbous indoor hut covered in thatch and fitted with a light pink opening.
    The hut provides a meeting space for colleagues, according to the studio founder.
    “The thatch, as a natural material, absorbs sound as well,” explained Smit.
    The store provides an art gallery-style space for homewareNext to the hut, Space Projects created an acoustic wall illustrated with “hieroglyphics” of Polspotten products, which references the gallery-like theme that runs throughout the outlet.
    “The store was inspired by Polspotten’s use of traditional techniques combined with a collage of their reinterpreted archetypes,” said Smit.
    It is also used as an office spaceElsewhere in Amsterdam, Dutch practice Studio RAP used 3D printing and algorithmic design to create a “wave-like” facade for a boutique store while interior designer Linda Bergroth created the interiors for the city’s Cover Story paint shop to streamline the redecorating process for customers.
    The photography is by Kasia Gatkowska.

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