Hasta La Ideas

Architect Keiichi Hayashi of Japan has converted this traditional timber townhouse in central Kyoto into a cosmetics store.

The renovation retained the original planning of the traditional “machiya” building, with the addition of structural steel frames to the ground floor.

The ground floor houses the cosmetics shop and a courtyard, with an office and gallery on the first floor.

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Photographs are by Yoshiyuki Hirai.

The following is from the architect:

Kyoto Silk by Keiichi Hayashi Architect

Kyoto, Japan

Kyoto Silk, a beauty cosmetic shop, is located in the centre of Kyoto, which is a famous cultural city in Japan. The project was to convert a ‘Machiya’, a Japanese traditional wooden townhouse, into a small shop. The building was required to be reinforced because the original building was deteriorating rapidly and it did not have the enough strength to meet the safety standards. Therefore, on the ground floor of the two stories, thin steel frames were fixed on the inside of the original wooden frames. And on the first floor, a plywood structure was used on the floor to keep the horizontal rigidity.

A typical ‘Machiya’ consists of ‘Mise’ ‘Niwa’ ‘To-ri Niwa’. ‘Mise’ means the life space in the room, ‘Niwa’ means the small courtyard, and ‘To-ri Niwa’ means the workspace and the passage of the half-outside air-well void. During repeated study and considering the ventilation, lighting, movement, privacy, approach to the street, and taking in the nature, it became clear that the constitution of ‘Machiya’ was most suitable for the new program as a building in a narrow space in the centre of the city.

As a result, in this project, I focused on the way that function as a beauty cosmetic shop could be complimented by the space limitations of this ‘Machiya’.
What is most important for this plan of a sales place is to make the products clear for the customers. (not simply as beauty display, but making it clear to the customer exactly what the product is.) A homogeneous, hard optical environment and simple shelves were considered so that the products never look exaggerated.

The courtyard is placed at the back of the sales space and is the space for the guests and the staff to take a rest. At the same time, it is the space to take in the small nature of the store. The space is able to be accessed directly through from the street. These relations are exactly the same as the original ‘Machiya’. The first floor of this building is used as an office and gallery.

Project Information:
Project name: Kyoto Silk
Location: Kyoto, Japan
Architect: Keiichi Hayashi

Design Period: February, 2009〜 April, 2009
Construction Period: May, 2009〜 June, 2009
Function: shop
Site Area: 52.38㎡
Building Area: 37.33㎡
Total Floor Areas: 67.58㎡
Stories: 2 stories
Structure: wooden frame (original)
Structure Engineer: Satoru Shimoyama / Shimoyama structure Office

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NE by Teruhiro Yanagihara	KIZUKI + LIM by Teruhiro Yanagihara	AZB by Geneto

Faceted chocolate-brown panels line the walls of this chocolatiers’s shop in Brussels designed by Minale Design Strategy.

A triangular relief at the top of the walls gives way to a flat, regular grid further down, making way for display cases.

Located on the city’s Grand Place, the Maison des Maîtres Chocolatiers Belges sells chocolate by ten master chocolatiers.

Minale Design Strategy also created the branding and identity for the shop.

More stories about retail on Dezeen »

The information that follows is from the designers:

A chocolate jewel case for chocolate gems

From outside, one is drawn in by the originality of this boutique.Once past its glass entryway, the Maison des Maîtres Chocolatiers Belges strikes the senses of the visitor with its bold singularity. The single floor-to-ceiling chocolate color treatment of this triangular space definitely stirs emotional response.

The three dimensions of the space suggest a chocolate quarry, out of which the shop has been hewn,» explains Samuel Dubech, interior designer for Minale Design Strategy. On the walls, one notes diamond-like facets in their upper and lower zones, which visually «melt» into the floor and ceiling. The chocolate «raw materials» give way at midpoint to perfectly aligned chocolate squares from which extend glass display shelves.

The interior design echoes the transformation process of crude rock from the quarry: from the rawness of the space to the refinement of the displayed product.The orthogonal feel of the store’s two display walls offers a well-defined showcase to resident artisans. Each is provided with a dedicated space for his or her portrait, career path, birthplace and personal quote. On the floor, carved join-lines link the lower points of the wall to the straight edges of the central units that seem to push up from the floor.

Also treated to a lick of chocolate brown, they are equipped with a retro-lit glass plate to highlight the products of the Maison des Maîtres Chocolatiers Belges. They become an exhibition zone according to the events of the year. Visitors can sample pralines and more than ten varieties of hot chocolate on site.

At the center of this triangular space lies the exposition zone of the Master Chocolate Makers. Presented in a unified fashion (photo, brand, quote…), they display their creations on glass shelves, a material that echoes the precious quality of the products on show.

At the heart of a chocolate quarry

The visitor penetrates a chocolate world from top to bottom, like a chocolate quarry out of which the shop has been carved. A raw material, as if shaped by the artisan. The intrinsic character of the space is relayed by its «diamond point» design, which, under the play of careful, precise lighting, offers subtly graded chocolate tones, and creates a unique experience for the visitor. Guaranteed pure chocolate !

At the back of the store, floor and wall melt in a «waterfall» of melted chocolate. Near the counter, to the left, the fudge-hued wall turns to milky white, thus introducing the white chocolate theme that continues upstairs. The second floor «atelier» is where the Académie du Chocolat will meet and where more «scientific» demonstrations will take place. All the Maison’s architectural elements were custom designed and made to measure.

Both awards are testimonials to the importance of design in today’s consumer market, concludes Gwenaël Hanquet. A design carried through to the smallest details creates a kind of harmony that literally transcends the concept to reveal its strength. These distinctions are also proof that design is not the reserved domain of big chains; it is within the reach of all those who want to make their point of sale a living, breathing space capable of creating emotional response, while measuring up to exacting standards of profitability.

Creating emblematic brands in France, Benelux and abroad, Minale Design Strategy is a corporate and retail identity specialist.

An independent agency with offices in Paris, Brussels, London, Rome, Moscow and Brisbane, Minale Design Strategy advises businesses, property investment companies, mass-market chains, and retailers in areas of market strategy, name and brand creation, merchandising, and commercial space design.

The agency currently accompanies networks such as Delhaize, Colruyt, Multipharma, Côte d’Or, Brico, Century 21, Luxus, Conforama, Carestel

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Godiva Chocoiste by Wonderwall	Confiserie Bachmann by HHF Architects	Kiosk at SCP by Michael Marriott

This pharmacy in Athens by Greek studio KLab Architecture has a branching facade and green panels suspended from the ceiling inside.

Designed to resemble the structure of a tree, the interior also features green perspex cabinets and white lacquered display furniture.

More medical architecture on Dezeen »

The information below is from KLab architecture:

Pharmacy-Cosmetics store – Koukaki – Athens

In one of the oldest neighborhoods of Athens close to the new Acropolis museum KLab architects were commissioned to create a new pharmacy-cosmetics store on the ground floor of an apartment building.

Our approach was to create a context within the certain context that existed. The scenario of a pharmacy come out of nature contributed to the idea that nature coexists with technology innovation to create pharmaceutical and cosmetic products. As response to that we exposed a tech-nature environment a lab within the nature within the city.

Branches as a dislocated shadow phenomenon of the adjacent trees create and protect the façade and the products from the heat and the sun. Like trees holding the old apartment building, disassociate the urban typology to create an eye catching façade.

In the interior emphasis was given to the ceiling and to the exposed concrete columns that represent the forest.

The reception desk follows the concept and becomes the center of the store.

Perspex and white lacquered shelves designed by Klab create a unique display atmosphere.

A metallic stair leads to the lower level a lab area where prescriptions are been produced and an office space.

Alternatively the area can be used for seminars and larger items display space. The stairs wall is being engraved with plaster and lighting creating plant morphing shapes.

KLab architecture

Konstantinos Labrinopoulos principal architect
team: Kostis Anagnostakis, Mark Chapman
Area: 300m2
Koukaki, Athens, Greece

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Bar Guru Bar by KLab Architecture	House in Andros by KLab architects	F-zein offices by KLab architects

Amsterdam architects UNStudio have completed this department store in Cheonan, South Korea.

Called Galleria Centercity, the building has facade comprising two layers of lamellas, which create a moiré effect.

Above photograph is by Kim Yong-kwan

Animations and light patterns are projected from this skin at night.

Daylight is admitted through the facade and reflected around the all-white interior to reduct the need for artificial lighting.

Areas of the department store are set aside for cultural programming, including exhibitions and fashion shows.

More about UNStudio on Dezeen »

Above photograph is by Kim Yong-kwan

Photographs are by Christian Richters/View unless stated otherwise.

The information below is from UNStudio:

Ben van Berkel / UNStudio’s Galleria Centercity in Cheonan – “If museums are turning into supermarkets, why then should department stores not turn into museums?”

“The Galleria Cheonan responds to the current retail climate in Asia, where department stores also operate as social and semi-cultural meeting places. Because of this, the quality of the public spaces within the building was treated as an integral aspect of the design.” Ben van Berkel

Above photograph is by Kim Yong-kwan

Eye Shopping – Re-conquering the public domain within a commercial destination

UNStudio’s Galleria Centercity Department Store in the Korean city of Cheonan reclaims the social and cultural space within the private, commercial large scale department store.

Rather than being the outcome of a prescriptive, standard-critical approach, the design of the Galleria Centercity is based on observations of current behavioural tendencies in large commercial spaces. Particularly in South East Asia, department stores serve a highly social function; people meet, gather, eat, drink and both shop and window shop in these venues. The department store is no longer solely a commercial space, it now offers the architect the opportunity to build upon and expand the social and cultural experience of the visitor. If today we are seeing the museum as a supermarket, then we are also now seeing the department store as a museum.

An expanded interpretation of utility beyond efficiency and profitability is at the heart of the design. In view of this, along with a more varied programme, UNStudio’s design seeks to provide a stimulating experience for the visitor.

Above photograph is by Kim Yong-kwan

On the outside, this is translated into an appearance that is almost impossible to fix. The double layered facades are articulated in a trompe l’oeuil pattern of vertical mullions. The vertical lines on the façade make the scale of the building unreadable; does it contain three floor levels, or fifteen? On the inside, this play with scale and dimension is continued in a way that is at least as radical as the outside. Upon entering, the department store is revealed as a layered and varied space which encourages investigation and unfolds as you move through and up the building.

Programmatically, the Galleria Cheonan incorporates a number of cultural and public spaces, including an art and cultural centre and a vip room. In the basement, a food court and specialty supermarket constitute another distinct destination within the building, which is simultaneously integrated with the overall design strategy.

Above photograph is by Kim Yong-kwan

Cheonan –New city development as platform for innovation

Situated some 80km south of Seoul, Cheonan is well connected to the capital by railway and road, with a new high speed rail link having recently been completed. The area around the new high speed terminal is under development and – prominently visible from the main road – the Galleria Centercity marks the entrance to this new development area.

“The most interesting thing to me about the effect of the Galleria Cheonan is that, because of the organisation of the atrium and the moiré treatment of the facade, Illusions are created which result in the seeming alteration of scales and the creation of double images. No image is permanent in this building.” Ben van Berkel

Dynamic Flow and optical illusion on a grand scale

The main architectural theme for the Galleria Cheonan is that of dynamic flow. This is found both inside and outside. The architecture of the 66,000 m ² building responds to its central position by presenting a deliberately changeable aspect all-around. Moiré effects, special lighting and animations ensure that the outside changes appearance constantly.

The double layered facade encloses the building, with a number of strategic openings incorporated into the inner facade layer. These openings provide daylight to the interior. At the same time, the lamellas of the outer façade prevent direct sunlight from entering the building, ensuring a cooler environment, while the use of white finishes throughout the interior minimises the need for artificial lighting.

The interior derives its character from the accumulation of rounded plateaus on long columns. The repetition of curves, enhanced by coiled strip lighting in the ceilings of the platforms, gives the interior its distinctive character. Four stacked programme clusters, each encompassing three storeys and containing public plateaus, are linked to the central void. This organisation propels a fluent upstream flow of people through the building, from the ground floor atrium to the roof terrace. As the plateaus are positioned in a rotational manner in space, they enable the central space to encompass way finding, vertical circulation, orientation and act as main attractor of the department store. The spatial and visual connections within the space are designed to generate a lively and stimulating environment, in which the user is central.

Media facade – The largest illuminated surface of its kind in the world

The strategy for the building enclosure consists of creating an optical illusion. During the day the building has a monochrome reflective appearance, whilst at night soft colours are used to generate waves of coloured light across the large scale illuminated surface. The lighting design was developed in parallel with the architecture and capitalises on the double layered facade structure. Computer generated animations specially designed by UNStudio are incorporated into the lighting design and refer to themes related to the department store, such as fashion, events, art and public life.

Place branding – not name branding

Rather than creating a platform for a multiple billboard effect made up of individual brand identities, the thematic animated content of the fully integrated media façade facilitates a more holistic and site-oriented urban approach to branding.

UNStudio

Design team: Ben van Berkel, Astrid Piber with Ger Gijzen, Marc Herschel and Marianthi Tatari, Sander Versluis, Albert Gnodde, Jorg Lonkwitz, Tom Minderhoud, Lee Jae-young, Woo Jun-seung, Constantin Boincean, Yu-chen Lin

Interior: Ben van Berkel, Astrid Piber with Ger Gijzen, Cristina Bolis and Veronica Baraldi, Lee Jae-young, Felix Lohrmann, Kirsten Hollmann, Albert Gnodde, Martijn Prins, Joerg Lonkwitz, Malaica Cimenti, Florian Licht, William de Boer, Eelco Grootjes, Alexia Koch

EXECUTIVE ARCHITECT/ SITE SUPERVISION/ LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT

GANSAM Architects & Partners, Seoul, KoreaI

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Dance Palace by UNStudio	Burnham Pavilion by UNStudio	MUMUTH by UNStudio

Japanese interior designer Yukio Kimura has created this combined cafe, gallery and second-hand book shop in Osaka, Japan.

Called Sorayumebako, the interior is lined with a wooden grid supporting shelves for the books and frames for the artwork.

The whole space is painted in orange, including walls, ceiling, floor and all the furniture.

Photographs are by Kiyotoshi Takashima.

Here is more information from the designer:

Sorayumebako

It is located in the area where locals live in, far away from the busy commercial centre. I designed the shop with the concept of “not to blend in the surrounding”, following my client’s request to reflect the meaning of “Sorayumebako” to the actual design.

“Sorayume” is a Japanese word meaning “a fabricated dream” to tell people as if you actually dreamed it. Having this concept in mind, I tried to create space where visitors feel as if they stepped into another world, a dream.

The key colour of orange interprets the time between day and night, summer and winter, and yin and yang. It reveals that this is a place for visitors to change their mind from yang “daily life” to yin “private life”. I only used one colour in order to enhance visitor’s awareness through the shop from within and without.

For letting visitors associate “bako” (the variant form of “hako”) meaning “a box” in English, I lined a series of portal frames from the entrance to the shop. Using this unique structure, I had tables, bookshelves, exhibition panels and projector panels built-in, in order to make use of space for many different occasions.

Design: kraf•te, Yukio Kimura
Sign Graphics: kraf•te, Yukiko Yamamoto
Collaboration / Lighting: Fukunishi Electric Corporation, Yoshino Higashi
Constructi+on: Up Life

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Shelf-Pod by Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio	Near House by Mount Fuji Architects Studio	Tree House by Mount Fuji Architects Studio