wedo

shopscape

one’s ability to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary
is most of all a matter of open-minded.
the more detached from the bustling world outside,
the more open you are to see beyond the ordinary and to prolong the span
of the ephemeral world of the extraordinary.

considering these,
we tried to brake off the barriers of a limited and still shop.
we were looking to create a place that has enough force to induce a free state of mind,
a tranquility feeling as the starting point for one’s permeability to new experiences
by transforming a bounded space into an unlimited one
and pushing the perception finiteness over its limits.

we create a space
that uses floating-ice pieces as key elements:
ephemeral bodies in essence, reflecting and refracting the light,
they outline an interior scape that recalls the landscape of a frozen lake in its melting point.
the walls that embody the space are lit from behind
and engraved with a fog like effect,
thus erasing themselves and giving unlimited depth to the space.

a very slow motion is imprinted to the icy elements,
which are used as exhibit bases for clothes,
through magnetic movement:
the bases of the element have a metal sheet insertion,
which allows them to be moved by magnets placed under the floor.
that movement introduces time as the fourth dimension:
the shopscape is constantly changing,
and the pace is that of a dream world.

the adimensional and atemporary place we created
changes the common shopping routine of absent-minded picking of clothes from a pile of anonymus items
by its capacity to fully involving you, your senses and your mind,
making you aware of the experience as a whole: shopspace, clothes, and yourself.

credits: elena dragu, welovearchitecture (magda vieriu, octavian hrebenciuc)
world space creators award 2011, competition entry