Hasta La Ideas

Milan 2014: an exhibition simulating the homes and workspaces of architects including Shigeru Ban, Zaha Hadid, David Chipperfield and Daniel Libeskind has opened in Milan, allowing young designers to explore the domains of their idols (+ movie).

Located at the Milan Fairgrounds, the Where Architects Live exhibition entails a series of spaces based on the domestic environments of nine eminent designers, based in eight different cities.

The installations, which also feature Mario Bellini, Marcio Kogan, Bijoy Jain, and Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas, focus on one detail from each home to create a multimedia representation of both that building and its surroundings.

“A house is not really private,” said Daniel Libeskind at the exhibition launch. “I have no secrets, so all the secrets are shown and of course my house is not just about furniture and light.”

In Libeskind’s space, sliced openings and recesses frame a series of views of artworks. “The domestic environment is no longer seen as some mechanical functionalistic machine to live in, in my view, and it is something that has stood with the global memory with where we are, where we are coming from and where we are going,” he said.

The home of Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, this year’s Pritzker Prize winner, was built around existing trees and features a series of elliptical windows and openings. Here, these shapes become projection screens displaying views of Tokyo.

“The problem with my house was that there were so many trees, and I didn’t want to cut any trees; that was the main problem. So we are living in between the trees,” said Ban, explaining how the design first came about.

The space belonging to Italian architect Mario Bellini replicates the combined staircase and bookshelf that reveals the architect’s love of reading, while David Chipperfield‘s installtion is dominated by a concrete wall that reflects the stark interior of his Berlin home.

Venetian blinds line one side of the installation for Brazilian architect Marcio Kogan, allowing light to filter gently into the space, contrasting with the spectrum of light and colour that patterns the walls of the room based on Zaha Hadid‘s London studio.

Antique warriors stand guard at the Paris home of Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas, and reappear here, while the final space is based on the reading room of Studio Mumbai principal Bijoy Jain.

Where Architects Live was curated by Francesca Molteni and Davide Pizzigoni, and can be found in Pavilion 9 at the Rho Milan Fairgrounds from 8 to 13 April. The exhibition also includes film interviews with each architect and scale models of all eight spaces featured.

The post Milan exhibition invites visitors to explore
the homes of Ban, Hadid and Libeskind appeared first on Dezeen.

Dutch designer Piet Boon has transformed the interior of a former military hospital chapel in Antwerp, Belgium, into a contemporary restaurant featuring a sculptural chandelier.

Piet Boon‘s Amsterdam studio worked with lighting designers .PSLAB and artists Studio Job on the interior of The Jane restaurant, combining modern elements with the chapel’s high ceilings and patterned tile floor.

“The main features we retained in The Jane were the ceiling, of which the peeling paintwork was preserved, and the original pottery floor tiles,” the design team told Dezeen.

Described by the designers as “fine dining meets rock ‘n roll”, the restaurant accommodates its kitchen in the church’s former altar.

.PSLAB’s large chandelier made from steel and hand-blown crystal glass forms a centrepiece in the restaurant. Thin steel poles extend out in all directions from its central cylinder, with small crystal globes attached to the end of each one.

Black circular tables and pale green armchairs sit beneath the chandelier, while larger seating areas are positioned against the walls.

Studio Job created 500 colourful glass window panels to replace the former stained-glass windows.

Referencing “stories of good and evil, rich and poor, life and death as well as good food and religion”, the panels include images of sunflowers, devils and skulls.

A marble-topped bar is installed on an upper-level viewing platform and surrounded by black upholstered bar stools. An illuminated skull light hangs down at the rear of the space.

Bespoke speakers were also installed to “spread sound”, reducing noise and echo from the high ceilings. “The acoustics of the restaurant play an important role in speech intelligibility and ambiance,” added the designers.

Here’s some information from Piet Boon:

‘Divine’ fine dining experience The Jane opens its doors March 25th

Michelin-star chef Sergio Herman and chef Nick Bril created their “fine dining meets rock ‘n roll” restaurant vision together with Piet Boon over three years ago in a mythical location in Antwerp; the chapel of a former military hospital. Piet Boon® Studio, responsible for the interior design and styling of The Jane, since then collaborated in the chapel’s unique transformation into a high-end, contemporary restaurant with international allure where experience is key.

Piet Boon

Based on her belief in authenticity, functionality and materials that ‘age beautifully’ the studio chose to restore only the highly necessary in the chapel and hence preserve the rest. The original ceiling amongst others conveys the pure, understated and respectful environment that serves as the authentic host for the ultimate fine dining experience.

The original altar gave way to the kitchen that – just like the atelier – is embraced by glass, like a modern shrine. It allows guests to witness everything the team creates for them.

The shared passion of Herman, Bril and Boon to work with pure, rich materials is expressed in the interior in which qualitatively outstanding natural stone, leather and oak wood are used.

Moreover Piet Boon® Studio, as with many of her projects, collaborated with a number of leading creative partners to shape the “fine dining meets rock ‘n roll” character of the overall experience. Studio Job, Mathieu Nab and .PSLAB and others each delivered their signature part within the total concept.

Studio Job

Job Smeets and Nynke Tynagel of Studio Job designed the windows consisting of 500 unique panels. Inspired by the chapel’s original function, foam spatulas, sunflowers, devils, skulls, babies, Jesus on the cross, dice, apple cores, wrenches, ice cream cones, a canon, croissants, penguins, trophies, gas masks and birthday cakes portray a contemporary translation of the old stained-glass windows. Archetypes from various worlds each tell masterpiece stories of good and evil, rich and poor, life and death as well as good food and religion.

.PSLAB

The ‘piece de résistance’ in the centre of the restaurant is a 800 kilograms-weighing gigantic chandelier of 12 by 9 meters with over 150 lights, designed by the Beirut-based design studio .PSLAB. The chandelier was created in such a way that it contributes to the intimate and ambient divinity of the chapel interior. The team, specialised in the design and production of site-specific contemporary lighting, laid out an overall lighting plan for The Jane to accentuate the unique elements of both the building and the interior. It is aimed to create a scenic ambience by seamlessly combining artistry and engineering.

SERAX

Together with Belgian company SERAX, specialised in decoration accessories, Piet Boon® designed tableware that conveys a shared passion for attention to detail and perfection. Base by Piet Boon® is a high quality bone white porcelain collection combining functionality and design. The tableware has high thermal stability, is lead- and cadmium free and will be featured in the The Jane’s Upper Room Bar.

The post Military church in Antwerp reinvented
as a restaurant by Piet Boon appeared first on Dezeen.

Garments are suspended in front of draped fabric above a steel parquet floor in the new womenswear floor that design studio JamesPlumb has created for east London fashion boutique Hostem (+ slideshow).

James Russell and Hannah Plumb of London-based JamesPlumb were influenced by the grainy textural appearance of old photographic plates, which they interpreted in the Hostem store’s palette of textured industrial materials.

“There is a strong emphasis on an honesty and truth to materials, which are predominantly used in their natural state, with subtle embellishments,” explained the designers.

A steel parquet floor used throughout the space comprises over 4500 individual tiles that were laid by hand in a herringbone pattern.

“The natural beauty of the steel, with its colour variations and imperfections, is accentuated by the herringbone pattern that highlights the uniqueness of each tile,” the designers added.

Free-standing steel display units create robust yet transparent vitrines and are inlaid with natural felt to add a textural dimension.

Steel is also used for a runner on the staircase that ascends to the second floor space and mezzanine level above.

Fabric panels suspended from the five-metre-high ceiling act as a backdrop for individual garments, which are displayed on custom-made clothes hangers.

Concrete shelves are supported by round steel pegs, while heavy concrete planks lean against the walls providing a counterbalance for the clothes rails that project from their surfaces.

The concrete was cast in timber moulds so it takes on the unique knots and grain of the wood.

Floor lamps shrouded with crumbled lead sheets focus the light and evoke the appearance of the aluminium cinquefoil that is used to mask photographers’ lights.

Russell and Plumb first started working with Hostem in 2010, creating the brand’s first space. They have also created a basement showroom filled with antique furniture at the store.

Photography is by Rachel Smith.

The designers sent us the following press release:

Hostem Womenswear

The collaboration that has seen JamesPlumb produce award winning designs for Hostem menswear, and bespoke service ‘The Chalk Room’ has continued and expanded. A brand new upper floor welcomes the arrival of a dedicated womenswear level – and a new environment to host it.

Connected, whilst fundamentally distinct from the store below, the new interior has an evolution that matches the store’s development. It has been led by a sense of privacy and remoteness from street level that required a feeling of calm and elevation to match. The space is informed and inspired by the warm monochromatic graininess and ‘noise’ found in old photographic plates. There is a strong emphasis on an honesty and truth to materials, which are predominantly used in their natural state, with subtle embellishments. Every element has been custom designed, and the majority made in house, by hand, in JamesPlumb’s studio.

The artistic duo have again demonstrated their ability to innovate materials with a lightness of touch that is timeless, whilst being full of surprising details. A unique steel parquet floor has been designed and developed, with over 4500 individual tiles laid by hand. The natural beauty of the steel, with its colour variations and imperfections are accentuated by the herringbone pattern that highlights the uniqueness of each tile. The white plastered walls have simply been sealed and polished with wax, and both surfaces offer a balance of unfinished rawness with a jewel like reflective surface.

Tranquility and simplicity pervades, but with depth and richness derived from texture and detail. A warmth has skillfully been created despite the connotations of materials commonly associated with an industrial look. Steel displays are inlaid with natural felt. Concrete shelves and planks support refined clothes rails. They have been cast in individual wooden moulds carefully chosen for their imperfections – the unique knots and deep wood grain of each are the antithesis of a manufactured finish. There is a playful contrast between these simple forms that reference basic building techniques and the precision steel works of the floor. The ungainly heaviness of concrete is avoided by both cheating gravity and embracing it. The shelves float on steel pegs in the wall, whilst the planks press themselves against the walls – effortlessly counterbalancing their rails full of product.

The stairs have a simple yet beautiful steel runner to guide you to the second floor and the mezzanine of the double height space. Fabric panels drape dramatically five metres from ceiling to floor, each framing an individual piece as if being captured for posterity in front of an infinity wall. There is an unusual and indulgent amount of space afforded to one garment. It is as if the items have fast tracked to a museum – a feeling of archival preciousness – and yet they are accessible and very much to be touched, explored, and worn. The lighting too, references the photographer’s studio. Custom designed lights inspired by cine-foil are in fact beautifully patinated lead sheets – crumpled, shaped and formed to direct the light.

This veneration to the clothing and attention to detail extends to the clothes hangers themselves that are entirely bespoke, each having been hand-formed from four pieces of steel. They are a line drawing made physical – the essence of a clothes hanger. The result – as with the store itself – is a beautiful tension between simple elegance, and raw materiality.

The post Industrial materials furnish Hostem’s
womenswear floor by JamesPlumb appeared first on Dezeen.

Jagged shelving units and scored surfaces were designed to evoke the look of food crates and packaging at this London butcher and delicatessen by local office Fraher Architects (+ slideshow).

The client asked Fraher Architects to design an interior for The Quality Chop Shop in London’s Farringdon that promotes the quality ingredients used in its neighbouring restaurant.

The architects chose utilitarian materials and raw finishes to reference the packing materials used to transport food to the shops and eateries that surround London’s historic Smithfields and Exmouth markets.

“The most unusual aspect of the response to the brief was to focus on the packaging aspect of produce used within the restaurant and the cooking profession as a whole,” architect Lizzie Webster told Dezeen.

“To continue this wrapped packaging theme through the layout of the display shelves, the joinery and lighting itself was a challenge,” she added.

Food is displayed on shelves and counters made from plywood, which were stained black in reference to the charred or sprayed labels commonly found on wooden packing crates.

The edges of the shelves expose the raw plywood to create a contrast with the blackened surfaces and give the impression of packaging that has been sliced open.

Each of the wall-mounted shelves has a jagged profile, creating an effect that appears to thrust the product forward, and items are framed against a dark background by the edges of the shelves.

Exposed light bulbs suspended from simple black cords were chosen to reinforce the rough-and-ready aesthetic.

Black cord also creates a criss-crossing pattern in front of the windows that recurs in an inverted form around the edge of the central display and sales point.

Original black and white tiles behind the butcher’s counter were retained and continue the basic palette used throughout the space.

Photography is by Jack Hobhouse.

Here’s a project description from Fraher Architects:

Quality Chop Shop, Farringdon

We have just finished working on the design and fabrication for the Quality Chop Shop in Farringdon, London. The shop sits next door to the Quality Chop House which has a reputation for excellent cooking and good quality ingredients. The Client approached us to consider design proposals for the refurbishment of the adjacent shop unit that had recently become available.

The food had to be displayed in a clear and simple manner, but pay reference to the utilitarian aesthetic of the food units surrounding Smithfields meat market and Exmouth Market.

The fit out elements such as the counter, produce display and lighting deserved to portray a textured and slightly rough finish, hence the display of end grain to all the plywood joinery.

The deep black stain contrasts sharply with the timber core of the units, reflecting the blackened character of timber food crates. The blackened stain plywood is reinforced by the use of cable lighting that represents the packaging and the wrapping of the food produced. The use of exposed bulbs reflects the raw nature of the food preparation that relies on exceptional raw ingredients.

Access to the working kitchen of the Quality Chop House restaurant was important to ensure that the fresh food and cake trays are constantly re-stocked with baked good throughout the day.

The project was delivered to a tight deadline, with Fraher and Co fabricating and installing the joinery within five days on site.

The post Quality Chop Shop butcher by Fraher Architects
references food crates and packaging appeared first on Dezeen.

Architect Elia Nedkov paired exposed concrete with clean white displays for the interior of this shoe shop in the historical centre of Sofia, Bulgaria.

Elia Nedkov designed the shop for footwear brand La Scarpa, stripping back layers of paint and wallpaper to expose the shell of the old 1960s building. A raw concrete wall lines one side of the shop while two ageing columns occupy the centre of the space.

“The minimal use of colour and materials of the newly added elements delicately coexist with the raw, old structure of bare walls and concrete,” said Nedkov.

Minimal white L-shaped display shelves are mounted onto the concrete, with lights installed behind them. “They appear detached from the wall to keep the contrast between old and new,” the architect told Dezeen.

A sideboard with a glossy white acrylic surface spans the plasterboard wall opposite. The naked edges and long milled lines of the sideboard reveal the rough chipboard underneath.

A matching reception desk sits against the back wall, hidden behind one of the columns. A mirror is also mounted to this wall, positioned opposite the glass shop door.

The shop is fronted completely in glass and a tree-branch handle has been attached to the door.

“I wanted to put a kind of poetic touch to the raw minimal style, so I changed the common handle on the glass door with a handmade one,” the designer said.

Nedkov also chose to rip out the old low plasterboard ceiling of the shop and paint the raw structure white, along with the floor, to add depth to the space.

Wooden crates were painted in pastel colours and stacked up to create a window display for the shop opening.

The post White shelves hang from crumbly concrete walls
in Bulgarian shoe shop by Elia Nedkov appeared first on Dezeen.