Creating a virtual world through the poetic use of materials was Valerio Olgiati’s intention in designing this flagship store in the city of Miami for the French high-end fashion brand Céline.
Such virtuality has to do with the manipulation of the space, which the practice of the Swiss architect has distributed in two distinct areas connected by a pitched stairway of sculptural nature: an upper level for shoes, handbags, and ready-to-wear clothes; and a lower floor configured as a showroom, with pyramidal forms and pillars that suggest the idea of a canopy.
 

In order to create this introverted virtual world, much has been made to depend on the atmosphere produced by the extensive use of the dominant material: marble. From the pillars to the pedestals by way of the walls and floors, all the architectural elements of the shop are clad in a slightly polished stone that spreads
all over like an abstract beige carpet. Plaques of very lightly veined sky-blue Brazilian marble are embedded in it, as
in a mosaic of large pieces or a work of marquetry executed in stone. The same sheets clad walls and ceilings. The result is a geometric bichromie that is perceived as sophisticated but also a bit unsettling.

Occupying what used to be a store, with direct access from the street, this dwelling is conceived as a mix between the Mediterranean house – introverted and spilling out into a courtyard – and the phenomenological house as described by Gaston Bachelard: a space governed by the power of imagination. The former’s functional and climatic efficiency thus combines with the latter’s capacity to transcend reality, and this is possible thanks to the importance given to sunlight, which shines into the atrium through skylights, windows, and even an English courtyard-garden that works like an all-tropical urban oasis into which the entire lower level of the house spills, as in a dream.
From a functional angle, another challenge was to resolve the circulation elements, given the extensive program and the linear composition of the house. The solution was to concatenate a series of different atmospheres whose particular qualities result from a free interaction of geometry, lighting, and color. Warm finishes and colder, more industrial textures are placed side by side.
 

La intervención satisface las necesidades de una persona con paraplejia y su pareja, sin perder de vista la estética ni la sostenibilidad de la vivienda pasiva. _x005F_x000D_
_x005F_x000D_ “Desde el primer momento, el objetivo principal fue adaptar la cocina a sus necesidades sin perder por ello funcionalidad, capacidad ni por supuesto sacrificar la estética y el diseño.
_x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_ Se decidió centrar el protagonismo de la cocina en una isla, que se convierte en el eje de la cocina y alrededor de la cual, el cliente se puede mover sin limitación alguna.
_x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_ La isla está compuesta por dos zonas. La zona de cocción construida con 2 cajones suspendidos, bajo los que se crea un espacio donde se pueda mover con total libertad con la silla de ruedas. Para mayor seguridad, se reforzó la parte inferior de estos cajones con un bastidor de hierro pintado en la misma tonalidad de la cocina, con el fin de que pasara desapercibido.
_x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_ La parte trasera de la isla está compuesta por un cajonero de gran capacidad, una puerta y un diáfano decorativo que dan servicio al comedor abierto a la cocina.
_x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_ Las limitaciones de este diseño para la isla, obligaban a alojar parte de los electrodomésticos en la zona de las columnas. La elección de los electrodomésticos tampoco fue al azar. La altura a la que está colocada la campana de isla suspendida, imposibilitaba el manejo de la misma al cliente, por lo que se escogió una placa de inducción desde la que se controla también la campana. _x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_ El horno escogido dispone del sistema de apertura SLIDE & HIDE, una puerta retráctil que se esconde por completo, posibilitando al usuario acceder al interior del mismo fácilmente desde la silla de ruedas. Se incluyeron guías telescópicas totalmente extraíbles que facilitan aún más el uso del horno.
_x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_ En la zona de columnas se escogió un armario de puertas retráctiles que alberga otro cajonero de gran capacidad, pensado para dar servicio de almacenaje a la cocina, y otra encimera de trabajo, ya que con la que queda disponible en la isla entre el fregadero y la placa, no era suficiente.
_x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_ La elección de este armario de puertas retráctiles cubre 2 funciones principales que eran muy importantes para el cliente:
_x005F_x000D_ – Esconder pequeños electrodomésticos de uso diario que por comodidad necesitaba tener a mano siempre, pero que no quería que se vieran desde el salón cuando recibe invitados en casa.
_x005F_x000D_ – La posibilidad de dejar las puertas recogidas dentro del propio armario, le permiten disponer del espacio necesario para circular con la silla de ruedas aun estando el armario abierto.” _x005F_x000D_ _x005F_x000D_

The spanish architectural practice Langarita-Navarro Architects is in charge of the revamp of an office in Aravaca, near Madrid. The clients requirements included the design of a stronger corporate image and an increase of the available working places.

The project consisted of the following actions:
– Reboot the space. Business change their size, location, clients…they need freedom of movement to allow new beginnings. 
– New material hierarchies. The horizontal plane vanishes,the warmth of the ceilings is reinforced with wood and the plants assume the leading role. 
– Multiple uses. Looking for the coexistence of superimposed worlds in order to find a model that is replicable, scalable and sustainable.

Neri&Hu’s renovation of an industrial roof space in Shanghai into offices for leading global insight and strategic consultancy Flamingo is inspired by paradoxical and enigmatic notions of the attic as a poetic subject. The insertion of house-like volumes into a landscape of concrete platforms breaks down the homogenous space, such that the roof is not just a singular element, but can be experienced on multiple levels, from various vantage points and on various scales. Moreover, the use of different types of glass conveys the feeling of slight discomfort and reverses the roles of observed and observer.

Located on the top floor of a multifamily building in Barcelona’s Raval neighborhood, this apartment is divided into two spaces with different programs by a circulation core and the courtyards that surround it. One of them, a room facing the street, is both a kitchen and an informal family room. The other one, four times larger, presents a fluid layout where living room, bedroom, and bathroom are integrated into a series of parallel walls. The porticoed rear facade serves to give the project a logical structure. The couch, bathtub, bedroom, shower, and dressing room all find their place on a soft green carpet. These two main spaces are joined by a mirror volume that makes the privacy of the bathroom infinite, while the bathroom becomes intimate in the infinity of the reflection.

Ten years after construction work began, The Jaffa opens its doors to reveal a space loaded with symbolism and references to Middle East culture. The British architect John Pawson has spearheaded the job of restoring a neo-Roman monastery built in the 19th century and building an annex. The historical enclave had a large chapel, a porticoed courtyard, and vaulted galleries. The objective of the restoration was to give the hotel all the necessary luxuries without destroying the mythical, almost sacred essence of the monastery. Pastel tones and noble materials are used. The Jaffa offers 120 hotel rooms, 32 apartments, an outdoor swimming pool, and two restaurants with an Art Déco aesthetic that are subtly attached to the original structure.

The architectural project has recently been recognised as Best Interior design in FAD Awards 2018. The building, which terraces down toward the sea, is fragmented into two volumes that rise two and three levels. The strategy is centered on longitudinally opening the space to achieve a visual connection between the sea and the street behind, so servant spaces like stairs, closets, kitchenettes, and bathrooms are concentrated along the party walls. For the claddings, clay bricks and tiles are combined in different arrangements and sizes, with tonal variations and small irregularities. The perimetral walls that define the central space and contain the services are built with bricks filled with cement glue.

Inspired by the work of M.C. Escher, the architect wanted to create a mysterious, infinite, impossible space through a seamless transition between 2D and 3D, and with elements forming optical illusions.

Maze uses a deep green tone that strikes a contrast with the white. In this room we find stairs that seem to challenge the laws of gravity and which lead us to golden doors, behind which is a path to a secret forest and other surprising findings. The Dream project in turn presents a palette of colors in white and soft pink, contrasting with the black doors.

The palettes of colors in both rooms, the purity of the volumes, and the lack of decor are meant to keep guests safe from the chaos of mundane life. All components of the real world, such as lighting fixtures and electrical appliances, are concealed, maintaining the pristine chimeric character of the space.
 

The Spanish footwear brand Camper commissioned the renowned Japanese architectural firm to design its retail space on Barcelona’s Plaça de Catalunya, and a thorough renovation was carried out which clearly gave the leading role to curved ceramic tiles, creating a warm, pleasing, inviting atmosphere.
 
There is a strong tile tradition in both Spain and Japan, although each country prepares the material in its own way. Whereas Japanese tiles have a glassy shiny finish, Mediterranean tiles keep the material as it naturally is, showing its real texture. Kengo Kuma & Associates wanted the individuality of each shoe style for sale to come forth by being displayed separately. Hence the decision to use a system of niches, and to this end tile seemed a perfect element to experiment with. With this traditional material the firm came up with terracotta pieces that were very elemental in shape but which, when repeated in space, yielded something highly complex. Covering walls but also forming shelves, a cash register counter, and benches for customers to try on shoes, tiles are practically the only presence in the stores.
 
In the words of the architects, “it is exciting to us to use such an old traditional material and find new ways to craft it, to shape it, to combine its units creating different architectural elements that can solve the needs of the contemporary life.”