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      Case-Real contrasts plaster and steel inside Aesop store in Shinjuku

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      Coarse plaster walls offset glinting stainless-steel display fixtures in this restrained store that architecture studio Case-Real has designed for Aesop in Shinjuku, Tokyo.The Aesop store occupies a glass-fronted retail unit in Shinjuku, a buzzing, tourist-heavy ward of Tokyo populated with bars, eateries and neon-lit billboards.

      Case-Real used just two materials to create the store’s simple interior
      When it came to designing the store’s interiors, Case-Real wanted to capture both what it describes as a sense of “artificial chaos” that permeates Shinjuku and the natural quality of Aesop’s skincare products.

      The locally based studio decided to use two contrasting materials that it felt reflected the dichotomy of natural and artificial – plaster and steel.

      Plaster covers the store’s walls, while steel has been used for display fixtures
      All of the store’s gently curving walls are coated with coarse beige plaster, which leaves behind a textured surface finish.
      The same plaster has been applied to a section of the store’s facade, creating a simple backdrop for Aesop’s logo.

      Aesop’s creative director selects significant moments from the brand’s first book

      Paint in the same beige hue has been washed across the ceiling and floor.

      A counter where customers can test products is also made from steel
      Shiny stainless steel has then been used to craft a series of lengthy display shelves that bend in line with the walls and several low-lying cabinets where extra stock can be hidden away, complete with steel handles.
      The metal has additionally been used to make the store’s service desk, as well as a long counter inbuilt with round washbasins where customers are invited to test out products or observe demonstrations from staff.
      A border of steel has also been created around the entrance doorway.

      Plaster gives the walls a rough surface finish
      The only other feature that Case-Real has incorporated in the store is a chunky plaster bench seat supported by cylindrical steel legs.
      It has been placed directly in front of a window that looks onto the busy streets of Shinjuku, allowing customers to quietly sit and people-watch.

      Plaster also appears on the store’s facade
      Case-Real was established in the year 2000 and is led by designer Koichi Futatsumata. Four years ago, the studio designed the interiors of another Aesop store in the Japanese city of Sapporo, covering its walls with locally-sourced volcanic stone.
      The studio’s Aesop Shinjuku store is shortlisted in the small retail interior category of this year’s Dezeen Awards. It will compete against projects such as the Pinocchio, a tiny 4.5-metre-wide bakery in Yokohama, and the Glossier pop-up in Seattle, where products are displayed amongst grassy mounds covered in wildflowers.
      Photography is by Daisuke Shima.
      Project credits:
      Design: Koichi Futatusmata, Yuki Onita (Case-Real)Construction: &SLighting plan: BRANCH lighting design (Tatsuki Nakamura)

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      Atelier L2 creates modular wooden interiors for Ateliers des Capucins

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      Rennes studio Atelier L2 has installed 20 wooden boxes as modular units for shops, exhibitions and hospitality businesses inside Ateliers des Capucins, a covered square in a 19th-century arsenal in Brest, France.The Ateliers des Capucins has been shortlisted for a Dezeen Awards 2020 in the large workspace interior category.
      The studio’s brief was to design a number of shells in order to create an interior street with two floors inside the historical arsenal building, covering 5,000 square metres.

      Top: the project is located inside the 10,000 square-metres former arsenal. Above: Units with gabled roofs are slotted into the ceiling
      Atelier L2 used laminated veneer lumber (LVL) for the shells, which were designed to stand out against the metal structure and pitched glass roof of the 10,000 square-metres Ateliers des Capucins.

      Each wooden shell measures between 150 and 400 square metres, with some of the concept stores in the space using more than one.

      Some facades are as tall as 13 metres
      “In this way, the client would be able to find buyers who could convert each ‘box’ to complete the cultural and service offer,” Atelier L2 co-founder Pierre Lelièvre told Dezeen.
      The boxes are a permanent fixture of the Ateliers des Capucins – which functions as a large, covered market space – and can’t be moved.
      “Even though their appearance suggests it, the ‘boxes’ are absolutely fixed and cannot be moved under any circumstances,” Lelièvre said.
      “Their technical and structural complexity does not allow such flexibility. They are indeed equipped with all the necessary networks to host any kind of activity: exhibitions, restaurants, offices, breweries, co-working.”

      Laminated veneer lumber was used for the facades and floors
      The studio chose to use LVL made of spruce veneers for the structure of the facades and the floors, which span 10 to 14 metres, as it allowed them to create the units with as little impact on the existing building as possible.

      Studio VDGA lines office in India with curving walls of honeycomb cardboard

      “The entire design of the project was thought out with respect for natural resources,” Lelièvre explained.
      “The facing of the facades is made of spruce, the internal bracing uses gypsum boards and the insulation is made of wood wool. The floor boxes are ballasted with aggregates.”

      The wood stands out against the 19th-century building
      Windows were inserted into the facades of the wooden shells, to make them resemble many smaller houses inside the bigger building.
      The ceiling height of the huge hall space means some of the boxes have facades that reach as high as 13 metres, and gabled roofs that have been slotted into the ceiling.

      The units are used for retail spaces, offices and more
      “The use of wood was a way for us to stand out against the existing building, which is entirely made of stone and metal, while also giving an ephemeral side to our layout,” Lelièvre said.
      “We wanted to give the feeling that our project was simply set down in this historical and remarkable setting.”
      Atelier L2 is based in Rennes and was founded by Julie de Legge and Pierre Lelièvre.
      Also on the shortlist for the large workspace interior category are the monochrome interiors for KCC Office in a former factory, and The Audo hotel in Copenhagen that doubles as a showroom.

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      Mythology crafts warm plywood interiors for Shen beauty store in Brooklyn

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      Plywood covers almost every surface in this store that creative studio Mythology has designed for beauty retailer Shen in Brooklyn, New York.Shen’s new retail space is nestled in Brooklyn’s Cobble Hill neighbourhood and measures 1,550 square metres.
      The former store of the beauty retailer – which is known for selling a roster of independent makeup and skincare brands – had been located in the nearby area of Carroll Gardens and featured a mix of white and lavender-pink walls.

      The interior of Shen’s store is lined with plywood
      Manhattan-based Mythology has fashioned a warmer fit-out for this location, opting to line every surface in Baltic birch plywood.

      “We challenged ourselves to use a singular material because we wanted to juxtapose a humble utilitarian material like plywood with the high-end products featured in Shen’s product offering,” Ted Galperin, a partner and director of retail at Mythology, told Dezeen.
      “Using both the face and end-grain of the plywood allowed us to create a multitude of custom applications, and add visual variety to the space.”

      Colour is provided by hand-drawn wall murals
      Inside, Shen has been loosely divided into three sections. The first section is dedicated to customer browsing and lies towards the left of the store.
      Plywood has been used here to make a sequence of storage units that fan outwards from the wall, each one complete with vanity mirror and shelving where products are openly displayed. Names of different brands that are on offer have been carved into plywood panels set directly above the units.

      Plywood counters displaying products slope out from the walls
      The second section comprises a couple of triangular plywood islands in the middle of the store, where Shen staff can spotlight certain products and talk through them in detail with customers or demonstrate how they’re used.
      On the right-hand side of the store is the third section, which is used for services like makeup tutorials. There’s also an angled plywood counter here that showcases candles and scents for the home, running beneath a three-dimensional plywood sign of Shen’s company logo.

      The store includes an area for makeup tutorials
      Excluding a handful of restored 1950s stools from Thonet, furnishings and decorative elements in the store have been kept to a minimum.
      A splash of colour is added by a bespoke mural created by New York artist Petra Börner, which features a black-line illustration of a person’s face surrounded by wobbly blotches of green and turquoise paint.

      Beauty treatment rooms lie towards the rear of the store
      Another mural by Börner using pink and orange tones appears in the treatment area at the rear of the store, where customers can come for treatments like facials, waxing, and microblading.
      Walls here have also been painted a pinkish hue, but exposed plywood can still be seen on the floor, built-in sofas and beauticians’ cupboards.

      Walls in the treatment rooms have been painted pink
      Mythology isn’t the only design studio that has created a striking retail interior using just one material.
      Brooks + Scarpa lined the walls of an Aesop shop in downtown Los Angeles with cardboard fabric rolls salvaged from local fashion houses and costume shops, while Valerio Olgiati blanketed a Celine store in Miami in blue-tinged marble.
      An Ace & Tate store in Antwerp is also lined exclusively in white terrazzo tiles inlaid with red and blue aggregate.
      Photography is by Brooke Holm.

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      Minimal interiors of Bodice store in New Delhi champions slow fashion

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      Bodice founder Ruchika Sachdeva has designed the pared-back interiors of the womenswear brand’s store in New Delhi to counter the “more, new and now” culture of fast fashion.Bodice’s flagship is located in New Delhi’s affluent Vasant Kunj neighbourhood, occupying a building on the same site as the brand’s design studio.
      Sachdeva took on the task of designing the interiors of the store herself, setting out to create a simple, thoughtful space that would encourage customers to “think more consciously about what they’re buying and why”.

      Top image: the exterior of Bodice’s New Delhi flagship. Above: floor-to-ceiling windows flood the store with natural light
      “I feel there is a need to question the way we consume clothes,” Sachdeva told Dezeen. “The fast-paced, retail-driven space like a market or a mall does the opposite by encouraging customers to buy quantity instead of quality.”

      “The culture there makes it alright to buy more and dispose quickly whereas our philosophy at Bodice is a little different,” continued Sachdeva, who is a judge for Dezeen Awards 2020. “We focus on longevity and for us, the essence of the product is a lot more important than the number of collections.”
      “We are not really in the favour of feeding the ‘more and new and now’ culture, so I felt that the store should reflect that.”

      Bamboo blinds partially cover the windows
      Fixtures and furnishings throughout the open-plan store are therefore few and far between – those that do appear have been made from naturally sourced materials.
      This sustainable ethos is also applied to Bodice’s clothing, which is designed to be a more minimal, practical alternative to garments currently offered to women in India.
      Pieces are fabricated from non-synthetic textiles like wool or silk and then dyed with natural pigments such as those sourced from indigo plants.

      Furniture inside the store has been kept to a minimum
      The blinds in the store that partially shroud the floor-to-ceiling windows are made from bamboo. The triangular-frame rails where garments are hung have been crafted from light-hued mango wood.
      Sachdeva also designed some of the tables and chairs that have been scattered throughout the space, borrowing samples from the adjacent studio.

      Bodice clothes are for the women “challenging conventions” in Indian society

      “Since this was the first space I have designed, I organically had a very clear idea of what I wanted,” she explained.
      “I knew I wanted it to be surrounded by trees and nature, [the store] has a lot of clear glass so I wanted it to be filled with sunlight and since we are in India, we have plenty of it,” Sachdeva added.
      “I feel that the store was a culmination of years of visual information that I have been processing.”

      Clothes rails are crafted from mango wood
      A growing number of designers and brands are attempting to slow the pace of the fashion industry and make consumers more considerate of what they purchase.
      Earlier this year, Gucci’s creative director Alessandro Michele announced that the high-end label will now be holding just two fashion shows per year instead of the traditional five in a bid to reduce waste that accumulates from producing each collection and the subsequent harm to the environment.

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      Adytum Library in Canberra is arranged around a single book-lined counter

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      A chunky, wedge-shaped island crafted from plaster and beeswax anchors the sparse interior of this pop-up library, shop and exhibition space that design studio Pattern has created in Canberra.The temporary library is situated in the trendy suburb of Braddon and belongs to new Australian wellness brand Adytum, which produces eco-conscious self-care products such as teas, face oils and bath soaks.

      Adytum Library is anchored by a huge island
      Although the brand is set to open the doors to its first spa in 2021, it was keen to conceive a slightly different style of wellness space that instead celebrates books and the “intellectual nourishment one receives from the written word”.

      Sydney-based studio Pattern – which is also developing the interiors of Adytum’s spa – was asked to design the library. The brand’s key request was that the pop-up had minimal environmental impact.

      Books and products from Adytum are displayed across the island
      With this in mind, Pattern ditched the idea of overhauling the entire retail unit and instead created just one striking element – a huge wedge-shaped island that sits at the centre of the floor plan, built around two existing structural columns.
      “While we didn’t have a tenancy of cathedral-like proportions to work with, we drew inspiration from the concepts of purity, simplicity, and clarity often found in religious architectural spaces,” Pattern’s co-founder, Lily Goodwin, told Dezeen.

      Incense is burned in the pop-up throughout the day
      The island, which gradually tapers off to a narrow point, has a reclaimed MDF frame that’s been covered with natural plaster and finished with a coating of beeswax.

      Pattern completes understated interiors for Locura bar in Byron Bay

      An array of design, architecture and art titles are displayed across the surface, which can be purchased by visitors or borrowed via Adytum’s membership scheme. The books are softly illuminated by a couple of white table lamps by Danish brand Hay which have been dotted across the island.
      There is also a handful of Adytum’s products, including incense sticks that will be burnt throughout the day.

      Adytum Library also exhibits work by Australian artists
      The outer periphery of Adytum Library is used to display works from Australian artists Traianos Pakioufakis and Alana Wilson.
      Pakioufakis’s expansive photographic prints are draped across bent copper pipes that were found in construction site waste, while Wilson’s collection of ceramic vessels – which have been darkened with metal-oxide glazes – perch on rough plinths that the studio salvaged from a local stonemason.

      Artworks are displayed on stone plinths or copper pipes
      Pattern was established in 2016 by Lily Goodwin and Josh Cain. Previous projects by the studio include Locura, a cocktail and small-plates bar in Byron Bay that’s meant to evoke the “raw beauty” of late-night eateries in Mexico.
      It also created rose-tinted interiors for The Daily Edited, an accessories shop in Melbourne.
      Photography is by Traianos Pakioufakis.

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      Pinocchio is a tiny bakery in Japan decorated in the colours of bread

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      Design studio I IN has used warm, golden hues to decorate the Pinocchio bakery in Yokohama, Japan, which displays bread and pastries on minimalist shelves.Measuring at just 4.2 metres wide, Pinocchio sits in front of Oguchi train station and has been decorated to match the delicacies sold within.
      The tiny bakery project, which I IN also calls Small Icon, has been shortlisted for Dezeen Awards 2020 in the small retail interior category.

      Top image: Pinocchio has been decorated to match the delicacies sold inside. Above: The bakery is just 4.2 metres wide
      “Though the space was extremely limited, the store asked to have a strong identity with the facade and interior,” said I IN.

      “Vivid gradient and soft textures that express the quality and colour of the bread are spread both inside and outside the store,” added the studio.
      “It expresses the soft charm of the bread itself and allows the customer to feel the world of bread with their entire body.”

      Pinocchio is spelt out in a slim, sans serif font above the doorway
      The interior and exterior walls are rendered in a textured material that has been painted with a golden hue, like the crust of a freshly baked loaf or a flaky croissant.
      “A plasterer who works in the performing arts collaborated with us,” said the studio. “Along with the vivid colour, the surface has a dense and bold texture.”

      The interior and exterior walls are rendered in a textured material
      Pinocchio is spelt out in a slim, sans serif font above the wide, square doorway. Glazed doors are set deep into the thick outer walls.

      Six bakeries and sweets shops with delectable interiors

      Inside, the ceilings have been painted to match the crust-coloured walls.
      A corridor of wooden floorboards runs down the centre of the shop, flanked by corridors of flooring that have been delicately sponge-painted in bready colours.

      The bakery interior features crust-coloured walls
      The bakery has only 30 square metres of floor space, so the designers created an uncluttered interior that focuses on the products.
      Two rows of minimal floating shelves made of wood run along both walls and around corners. Spotlights on the ceiling and under the topmost shelves bathe the baked goods in a soft glow.

      Two rows of minimal floating shelves line the walls
      Based in Tokyo, I IN is a design studio that was founded in 2018 by Yohei Terui and Hiromu Yuyama.
      More bakeries with interiors that are good enough to eat include this sugar-pink bakery in Ukraine and an artisanal flour shop and bakery in Canada painted in shades of caramel.
      Photography is by Tomooki Kengaku.
      Project credits:
      Client: Yokohama shokusanArchitect: I INConstructor: LegorettaLighting design: I IN

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      Nendo completes Marsotto showroom in Milan with dimpled marble facade

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      Passersby can perch in the facade of Italian marble brand Marsotto’s new showroom in Milan, which has been designed by multidisciplinary studio Nendo.From afar, the front of Marsotto’s showroom in Milan’s Brera district looks as if it’s sealed up by blocks of veiny white marble.
      To achieve this, Nendo lined the entire facade – including the flush front door – in marble tiles, being careful to set them in line with the existing stonework on the building.

      Top image: people can perch in the showroom’s facade. Above: the facade appears to be sealed up with marble
      At one point the tiles dip inwards to form a small nook where passersby on the street can sit.

      “Because the traffic circle facing the showroom will soon be greened and turned into a small park, part of the facade was made into impromptu street furniture with a soft recess on it, in the hopes that neighbours might sit as if on a bench and rest for a spell,” Nendo explained.

      A flush-set door can be pushed back to reveal the showroom’s entryway
      Beyond the showroom’s front door lies a small white-painted entryway. Pale marble has been used again here to cover the floor and to form a screen which obscures the staircase leading down to the basement.
      The screen is made up of two overlapping slabs of 10-millimetre-thick marble, each punctuated with holes that measure 65 millimetres wide.
      “The partition’s tempered transparency and lightness reduce the oppressiveness of the marble constitution, softly drawing visitors to the basement exhibition space,” the studio added.

      A perforated marble screen hides the staircase to the basement
      Downstairs, the showroom has been divided into four different rooms. To keep a majority of the floor area free to accommodate different exhibitions, Nendo created three-sided display plinths that sit in the corner of the rooms.
      Each of them is backlit with bright-white strip lights.

      Products are presented on three-sided display plinths
      Some of the plinths dramatically curve inwards to form a half-moon shape. One of these has been used to present sample blocks of different types of marble that Marsotto offers.
      Stool seats in matching finishes are displayed in a row underneath.

      Steel and concrete steps cut through facade of Stairway House by Nendo

      Another room in the basement has been kit-out with one of Marsotto’s dining tables and wall-mounted shelves so that, when necessary, it can be used to host lunch meetings.

      Some of the display plinths curve inwards into a half-moon shape
      This isn’t the first time that Nendo has worked with Marsotto. For the 2016 edition of Milan Design Week, the design studio created an exhibition space for the marble brand that was half white, half black – furniture was arranged to match.
      Four years ago Nendo also came up with the Sway table for Marsotto. Designed to “provide a new expression of agility to marble”, the table looks as if it’s tilting to one side.
      Photography is by Hiroki Tagma.

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      Patagonia granite and wooden logs decorate Off-White's first store in Milan

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      Fashion brand Off-White’s first store in Milan uses natural materials to add warmth to a paired-back store that has white walls broken by Patagonia granite cabinets.Located on Via Verri in Milan, the 400-square-metre Off-White store opened in September and will sell menswear, womenswear and homeware. According to the brand, which is led by fashion designer Virgil Abloh, the boutique “embraces earthy yet elegant minimalism”.

      Top: a wooden log adds an organic feel to the entrance. Above: wall niches are clad in Patagonia granite
      Organic materials were used across the store, with a “fallen” tree log placed near the store’s entrance and granite cabinets used to display products.

      The theme is carried through into the second ground floor room, where wooden plinths were used to create an installation to showcase Off-White accessories and shoes.

      Wooden plinths show Off-White accessories
      Throughout the ground floor womenswear section, travertine flooring is partly covered by rose-coloured rugs featuring the brand’s logo.
      Display cases were kept simple and modernist in polished steel and glass, but the brand chose wall niches clad in Patagonia granite to add interest to the clean walls and underline the organic feel of the space.

      The menswear floor features green hues
      The upstairs floor houses the menswear section, which has a different colour palette to differentiate it from the womenswear section.
      Floor rugs are evergreen instead of rose and a pale green hue is picked up in the wall niches.

      Wooden blocks are used for seating
      Wooden and marble blocks and granite plinths show off the brand’s accessories, while the men’s ready-to-wear is displayed on steel racks.

      Virgil Abloh and AMO design flexible flagship Off-White store in Miami that “can host a runway show”

      The final room in the store, which houses Off-White’s homeware collection, features silk wallpaper and travertine flooring as well as wooden display stands and wall niches.

      The homeware section has simple wood display cases and stands
      Though this is the brand’s first store in the city, Off-White’s design studio is already based in Milan.
      “With a design studio based in Milan, Italy, the label harnesses the history and craftsmanship within the country yet offers a global perspective in terms of design and trends,” said the brand.

      Off-White Milan is on Via Verri
      Off-White also recently unveiled its first Miami store, a flexible flagship that “can host a runway show”.  In addition, Off-White opened the doors to its first stand-alone store in London in September.
      Abloh, who was a judge for the 2019 Dezeen Awards, works on numerous projects outside Off-White and recently teamed up with Mercedes Benz to create a conceptual version of the Mercedes‑Benz G‑Class car.

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