Selfridges has collaborated with mobile phone company HTC to create a temporary 1,700 square metre skatepark replete with ramps, rails, benches and banks, in the middle of London’s West End.
The HTC One Skatepark, located in the former Selfridges‘ Hotel behind the flagship store on Oxford Street, reimagines what the shop would like if it was a skatepark.
The design by creative agency Prime and Fire includes ramps that have been finished in Selfridges yellow and mimic the store’s iconic carrier bags. A lipstick and pair of sunglasses have also been reimagined as skateable objects.
Inspired by landmarks in the British capital, the project incorporates urban references including yellow road markings and exposed concrete beams.
The designers were also inspired by more specific pieces of street furniture found around the capital including a handrail in Moorgate, a wavy bench near the Thames Barrier that has been appropriated by skateboarders and a marble bank in Euston.
Nestled amongst the various London-themed skating obstacles is HTC’s first-ever concept store, which was opened in conjunction with the release of the Taiwanese technology company’s One M8 smartphone this week.
A cafe has also been installed inside the space, alongside training facilities for first-time skateboarders.
Across the road, Selfridges has created a dedicated skateboard shop called The Board Room. The retail chain commissioned designers such as Erdem, Kenzo and Christian Louboutin to create limited-edition skateboards, which are available to buy.
There are also one-off designs including a Maison Martin Margiela board which incorporates high-heeled hoof-shaped shoes and a board by Rick Owens that has been made from petrified wood. Roberto Cavalli has also created a leopard-print surfboard as part of the collection.
The temporary facility is open to the public until April 19.
The window of London department store Selfridges has been dressed with a selection of new inventions by British designer Dominic Wilcox, including a reverse listening device and binoculars for viewing the future (+ slideshow).
Crystal Beard
Dominic Wilcox chose ideas from his Variations on Normal collection of absurd but logical inventions for the window display, which is part of Selfridges’ Festival of Imagination.
Tea Cup with Cooling Fan
“The theme I was working to was extremely broad, simply ‘Imagination’,” Wilcox told Dezeen. “I started adding ideas into my sketchbook one at a time and eventually filled a few pages with a rough outline of thoughts. Once I started selecting materials and making the ideas into real objects they naturally changed and developed.”
Potted Umbrella
His handmade sparkling beard is made from 2000 crystals and a Wedgwood cup and saucer has been modified to include a fan for cooling a piping hot brew.
Bugle Alarm Clock
An umbrella with inbuilt flowers pots is designed so the user can water their plants and stay dry at the same time. The Reverse Listening Device – shown in the short movie above – allows the wearer to listen to sounds on their left side in their right ear and vice versa. “It was interesting to use the device and find out that it actually worked well,” said Wilcox.
Future and past-viewing binoculars
He created a pair of binoculars through which the user could view the future and past, simply by inputting their chosen date and looking through the eyepieces.
Spiked Tap
An alarm clock with a brass bugle attached to the side is powered by mini compressor to create a noise loud enough to ensure you wake up.
Spiked Teapot
Metal objects are given a punk makeover by covering them in spikes include a faucet, a teapot and a hip flask.
Spiked Brandy Hip Flask
Wilcox proposes attaching small aeroplane wings to the sides of London’s black cabs to alleviate the city’s traffic congestion.
Flying Taxi
A suitcase with legs so it can walk on its own instead of being dragged along and toothbrushes with maracas on the bottom to make cleaning teeth more musical also feature in the display.
Walking Suitcase
The items are suspended in the window beside bubbles of text to explain their functions.
An events space designed by Rem Koolhaas’ OMA has opened in the basement of London department store Selfridges, featuring a circular amphitheatre, vivid green columns and a stripy monochrome floor (+ slideshow).
The Imaginarium was designed by OMA as “a school of imagination” and will be used to host a series of lectures, debates and activities as part of the Festival of Imagination taking place over the next six weeks.
The space centres around the semi-circular sections of the main amphitheatre, which were built on wheels so that they can be moved into different configurations. Pushed together, they form an intimate enclosure for up to 72 people, but can also be separated to surround a mobile stage.
The hollow structure of the seating is clad with translucent polycarbonate, allowing light to shine through from dozens of fluorescent lighting tubes installed within.
Elsewhere, cube-shaped stools are laid out in a grid to create another seating area, but can be moved into different layouts to suit various events and activities.
The floor of the space is painted with an Op Art-style pattern of black and white stripes that were applied using a road-painting machine.
Surrounding columns are painted in a shade of green often used to overlay a background in televised news and weather reports.
The perimeter walls are covered with mirrors that disguise the boundaries of the room.
The Koolhaas-designed auditorium is one of three Imaginariums installed at Selfridges‘ department stores across the UK. All three will host daily events during the Festival of Imagination, which is intended to “explore the power of the mind”.
Selfridges launches the Festival of Imagination, with the unveiling of the Imaginarium – the first school of imagination of its kind
Selfridges London previews its Festival of Imagination with novelist Lucy Hawking (daughter of scientist Stephen Hawking) and Selfridges’ Creative Director Alannah Weston in the Imaginarium, ahead of the official launch to the public, tomorrow, Friday 17 January.
Based on Harry Gordon Selfridge’s belief that imagination is the antidote to routine and the mother of originality, The Festival of Imagination is Selfridges’ new campaign to encourage people to explore the power of their own imagination with the help of some renowned personalities (the festival’s bright imagineers) who are helping to shape and inspire our future.
Following on from the resounding success of No Noise in 2013, Selfridges’ first wellbeing campaign, the Festival of Imagination continues to explore the power of the mind. This time, instead of celebrating silence, meditation and all things ‘less is more’, Selfridges focuses on what happens when our creativity is stimulated and imagination takes flight.
The line up of imagineers giving one of the 100-plus talks, lectures and discussions in Imaginariums in Selfridges stores in London, Manchester and Birmingham include Lucy Hawking, Jeanette Winterson, Carol Ann Duffy, and Nicola Formichetti.
The stunning London Imaginarium was designed by iconic Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas, under whom Zaha Hadid, the world’s most famous female architect once studied and trained.
The Festival of Imagination officially launches on Friday 17 January and runs until 2 March. The Imaginariums’ schedules and all details about the festival are available at selfridges.com.
This movie we filmed at Dezeen’s pop-up shop of the future at London department store Selfridges demonstrates how augmented reality technology could transform retail.
Dezeen editor-in-chief Marcus Fairs introduces the shop we curated for Selfridges‘ Festival of Imagination, which includes a virtual retail experience for Dezeen Watch Store and a life-size walkaround digital model of Zaha Hadid’s superyacht – both created by technology company Inition.
“The Imagine Shop is an attempt to visualise the kind of products, services and shops we might have in the future,” says Fairs.
Imagine Shop at Selfridges
The space on the ground floor of the department store contains all wall of 3D-printed products and clothing by Janne Kyttanen of 3D Systems, and even features a giant printed ping-pong table.
“The most exciting thing here is that we’ve worked with Inition, which is a 3D visualisation company, to show how augmented reality could be used in stores of the future,” Fairs says.
Inition lead creative Alex Lambert
Inition lead creative Alex Lambert then talks about the augmented-reality projects that his company and Dezeen worked on for this event.
“Inition and Dezeen collaborated on two pieces of augmented reality,” he says, “one for watches available at the Dezeen Watch Store and another for a £300 million superyacht designed by Zaha Hadid.”
Augmented reality demonstration of Zaha Hadid’s superyacht model
Lambert talks through the technology for the yacht models, which works using a tablet camera that picks up the code from patterned markers then displays the 3D model on screen.
“This type of augmented reality relies on a tablet,” he explains. “You’ll see a live video feed coming through the camera and once you point it at the marker the 3D model will appear.”
Augmented reality demonstration of giant Zaha Hadid superyacht model
Two versions of the yacht are included in the shop: a miniature version and a full-size model that glides across the tablet screen.
“We’ve actually created the yacht in full scale,” says Lambert. “It’s a sunny blue ocean with a full-scale yacht sailing past, just to give people an idea of the scale of the superyacht.”
Alex Lambert tries on designs at the virtual watch store
Using the same technology, shoppers can try on designs from Dezeen Watch Store at a virtual watch shop. Shoppers simply attach a band around their wrist and hold it up to a camera, then the chosen watch manifests over the band.
“We take one of these bespoke trackers… turn to the camera, get the marker in view and boom! The watch appears,” Lambert describes.
Alex Lambert tries on designs at the virtual watch store
Inition added texture and shadows to the virtual watches to make them look as realistic as possible. Different models and colourways appear instantaneously around the wrist on screen as they are selected.
“Dezeen are very forward thinking in employing this technology, especially for watches,” says Lambert. “In the future hopefully people will download the app, use a webcam or tablet and try on the watches at home before they purchase online.”
Visitors to London department store Selfridges can take a virtual reality tour created by technology company Inition inside a helmet by fashion designer Gareth Pugh (+ slideshow).
Gareth Pugh worked with Inition to create a “multi-sensory experience” called Monolith, installed at Selfridges for the Festival of Imagination taking place this month.
“The inspiration for this piece really came from the desire to create a totally immersive experience,” said Pugh. “I’ve always believed in the importance of fashion film and new technology as a means of communication.”
Visuals seen during the virtual reality experience
The visitor enters a soundproofed booth and completely covers their head with a pointy black helmet, which Pugh designed specifically for the installation based on costumes he created for the Royal Ballet.
Visuals seen during the virtual reality experience
Using an Oculus Rift virtual reality display embedded in the headpiece, the wearer is taken on a journey through monochromatic cityscapes, undulating walls and figures with silhouettes that are also similar to Pugh’s costumes.
“It’s an abstract narrative based on Gareth’s life, his works and his experiences,” senior creative at Inition Alex Lambert told Dezeen.
Visuals seen during the virtual reality experience
Once geared up, a 360-degree white environment is visible all around. “When you’re inside [the headpiece] you are transported to another world,” said Lambert. “It’s a totally immersive, full 360-degree virtual world that you can look around.”
Visuals seen during the virtual reality experience
The experience begins when staring at a spinning black cube found in the artificial world. “Aesthetically it looks very similar to Gareth’s work, and as soon as you look at that cube and it spins for a certain period of time it starts,” Lambert explained.
Hand rails are installed around the sides of the compact space in case the user loses their balance during the experience. Industrial music by London artist Matthew Stone accompanies the visuals.
Visuals seen during the virtual reality experience
The project was developed as one of a series of experimental installations and pop-ups at the Festival of Imagination that runs all this month, as well as to coincide with the London Collections: Men fashion event that took place in the British capital last week.
Visuals seen during the virtual reality experience
Here’s some more information sent to us by Inition:
Experience fashion designer Gareth Pugh’s virtual reality journey at Selfridges
Creative production company Inition produces a mind-bending virtual reality experience launched by Selfridges to mark fashion designer Gareth Pugh’s first appearance on the London Collection: Men’s Schedule.
The Monolith installation includes a futuristic cutting edge immersive journey into the inspirations and aesthetics of the acclaimed designer’s vision for his new collection.
Gareth Pugh says: “The inspiration for this piece really came from the desire to create a totally immersive experience. I’ve always believed in the importance of fashion film and new technology as a means of communication, but the team at Inition were able to propose a new and exciting way for us to approach this project. It’s an exciting opportunity to re-imagine my aesthetic in a totally new context.”
Pugh worked with Inition 3D artists to ensure the multi-sensory experience truly reflected his inspirations.
“This was a very exciting project to work on, as it was very creatively led but also had a number of new technical aspects that needed to be overcome in order to achieve the desired feeling that Gareth wanted to convey,” says Inition senior 3D artist Lee Spooner.
After entering a soundproofed chamber, users wear a characteristically geometric Gareth Pugh VR headset, which harnesses Oculus Rift technology to bring the 3D visuals to life. Virtual reality has never been used in a retail setting in such a way before.
With hand rails provided in case of momentary loss of balance, the two minute futuristic fashion film and part fairground ride begins, featuring monochromatic cityscapes, undulating walls and signature stark shapes, all underscored by an industrial gritty sound track produced by London based artist Matthew Stone.
Inition has been producing virtual reality experiences since 2001 but with recent advances in technology, imagination can now be less constrained, as perfectly illustrated by the Gareth Pugh’s Selfridges installation.
“Our history of creating bespoke experiences using emerging technology platforms was a natural fit with the pioneering work of Pugh and the innovative approach to retail taken by Selfridges. This is a market with huge potential for digital technologies and Inition is delighted to be pushing boundaries within this space,” says Ainsley Henn, Producer at Inition.
Monolith installation from the outside
“It was nice to be able to let our creativity and imaginations run free, and early on we had a good understanding with Gareth about the direction he wanted this immersive experience to take,” says Lee Spooner.
Gareth Pugh continued, “The title, Monolith, is the perfect description for this piece: something singular and imposing, and in some way otherworldly. I imagine that each person will view it differently, but I would hope that it’s something memorable and engaging. Ultimately the installation requires a little commitment, you need to step into that world – from the padded sound proofed booth to the angular head piece required to view the installation… they’re all considered parts of this unique experience.”
The Monolith installation is now open to the public and is located in the Menswear department of Selfridges (London) on Level 1.
Architecture firm OMA has designed a temporary auditorium for the basement of London department store Selfridges (+ slideshow).
Called the Imaginarium, the space will be used to host talks, debates and lectures during the Festival of Imagination, which opens in the store on 16 January.
The installation will feature a circular “amphitheatre” contained within a polycarbonate wall. Other walls in the space will be clad in mirrors while the floor will be painted in an Op Art-style pattern of black and white stripes, which will be applied using a road-painting machine.
“We asked Rem [Koolhaas of OMA] to do it and he said yes,” said Carlotta Jacoby, senior visual project manager at Selfridges. “It’s quite a simple design but with the mirrored walls it’s going to be pretty bonkers”.
The stepped amphitheatre will seat up to 72 people. OMA has also designed the furniture for the space and a folding screen that will be used during talks. Columns will be painted with green-screen paint.
The Imaginarium will host daily events during the Festival of Imagination – a store-wide festival that will “explore the nature, power and positive impact of imagination”. It will occupy the Ultralounge in the basement of the store, which is located on Oxford Street in central London.
Dezeen has teamed up with London department store Selfridges to present a futuristic concept store, featuring an augmented-reality watch store and a walkaround digital model of Zaha Hadid’s £300 million superyacht (+ slideshow).
The Jazz superyacht designed by Hadid for German shipbuilder Blohm + Voss (pictured above) will be the biggest and most expensive item ever sold at Selfridges.
Visitors will be able to explore an augmented reality scale model of the 90-metre yacht using a tablet computer. A representative of Blohm + Voss will fly over to London to discuss purchase options with potential customers.
The installation is part of The Imagine Shop, which opens on the ground floor at Selfridges on Monday 6 January and runs until 2 March as part of the Festival of Imagination – a store-wide festival that will “explore the nature, power and positive impact of imagination”.
The augmented reality technology at the Imagine Shop has been developed by Inition
Curated by Dezeen, the Imagine Shop will showcase future-facing products and explore how augmented reality could be used in future to create an immersive retail experience.
Customers can virtually try on a range of watches from the Dezeen Watch Store collection
Large items like cars, yachts or houses can be experienced virtually, existing only as digital models on a tablet or smartphone, but anchored to a physical location via a 2D “marker” pattern that tells the software where to place the object. This means customers can walk round, and even through, objects as if they were really there.
As well as the yacht, the shop will feature an augmented reality Dezeen Watch Store pop-up, where customers will be able to virtually try on a range of watches.
Other products on sale in the store will be grouped in three categories: Future Beauty, featuring objects that express a futuristic aesthetic; Future Life, including new product typologies we may use in the future; and Wearable Technology.
“Dezeen has long been a rich source of reference and inspiration for the creative teams at Selfridges, and we’re delighted to finally be collaborating with them on such a uniquely imaginative project,” said Linda Hewson, director of creative and windows at Selfridges.
Rendering of the Imagine Shop at Selfridges
The augmented reality technology has been provided by London 3D technology company Inition. “Inition is excited about the opportunity bringing our emerging technology production experience to present a world-acclaimed architect’s designs in a retail setting,” said Inition producer Ainsley Henn.
He added: “Being able to walk around a spectacular Zaha Hadid yacht as it ‘floats’ in front of you is very different to flicking through a traditional brochure. As far as we are aware, this is the most expensive retail item to be promoted in such a way.”
Product display area at the Imagine Shop at Selfridges
Festival of Imagination is at Selfridges, 400 Oxford Street, London W1A 1AB from 16 January. The Imagine Shop is open from 6 January.
L’agence créative hollandaise Staat a imaginé et conçu une série de 8 vitrines interactives animées pour la marque Nike à Selfridges – Londres. Réalisées en collaboration avec Nike Brand Design EMEA, ces créations très réussies sont à découvrir en vidéo sur une musique de Mmoths « Folding ».
Alex Cochrane Architects has created a space for shoppers at London department store Selfridges to find peace and quiet amid the bustling emporium (+ slideshow).
London studio Alex Cochrane Architects built the space on the lower ground floor of the Selfridges as their interpretation of a previous silence room created by the store’s founder when it first opened in 1909.
“Gordon Selfridge did a Silence Room many years ago, and sadly there’re no records of what that room looked like so we did our own version of what the Silence Room might be,” Alex Cochrane told Dezeen.
Next to a major thoroughfare, adjacent to a cafe and flanked by two lifts, the space is not intended to be completely silent but rather encourage visitors to lower their voices and take time to unwind.
“Our take from the beginning was that there was always going to be background noise and we really wanted to create a room that people can feel silent in regardless of that,” said Cochrane.
After removing their shoes, visitors are channeled into a dark corridor with light bulbs hung in each corner to guide them around the back of the rectangular box and through a gap in the wall.
Cream felt covering the walls, floor and seats helps to insulate some of the sound and provide comfortable surfaces to relax on once inside.
“We’ve seen people sleeping there, meditating there. One person was seen praying there,” Cochrane said.
A modular bench finished in oak veneer wraps around the edge of the room, becoming deeper at the shorter ends of the room to provide extra space to lie down.
LED lighting hidden at floor level and behind the seating creates an ambient glow.
Services and ductwork on the ceiling remain exposed but painted black as a subtle reminder of the nature of the building.
“Similar to the background noise, we wanted to keep the visual noise from the ceiling. We wanted it to serve as a reminder of being in a commercial institution such as Selfridges,” Cochrane explained.
Famous brands including Heinz, Marmite and Levi’s have produced limited editions of their products with no brand names on the packaging for London department store Selfridges.
Top: Heinz No Noise Tomato Ketchup 342ml, £2.99 Above: Heinz No Noise Baked Beans 415g, £1.99
The range of pared-down packaging was created for a new concession in the Selfridges store on Oxford Street called The Quiet Shop, which also stocks a range of minimal fashion, accessories and beauty products.
Above: Clinique No Noise Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion 125ml, £29.50
Products with their names removed include Heinz tomato ketchup, Crème de la Mer moisturiser and Marmite.
Above: No Noise Marmite 250g, £4.99
“As we become increasingly bombarded with information and stimulation, the world is becoming a noisier place,” say the organisers. “In an initiative that goes beyond retail, we invite you to celebrate the power of quiet, see the beauty in function and find calm among the crowds.”
Above: Levi’s No Noise 501 straight-leg jeans, £115
The No Noise at Selfridges campaign also features a Silence Room where shoppers can take a moment to compose themselves and relaxation pods by meditation company Headspace.
Above: No Noise Crème de la Mer Limited Edition Moisturising Cream 60ml, £190
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