Friday 24 April 2015

Ethereal ceiling in SND Fashion Store China, by 3GATTI Architects

SND Fashion store China, by 3GATTI Architects - Nest of Pearls

Located in Chongqing, China, the SND Fashion Store is designed by 3GATTI Architects, with Francesco Gatti as lead architect. At first glance, this space appears to be a museum exhibition, a conceptual space designed with the user in mind, the soul that will weave in and out of the light and shadow created by the thousands of individual fins that hang down from the ceiling.

When 3GATTI embarked on this project they started from the simple and appealing idea of hanging everything from the ceiling, thereby being able to clear the way of furniture and other props, allowing the customer to be free to circulate as they please. This led to them imagining an 'elastic' ceiling, one that was pulled down the by the weight of the various objects that hang from it.

SND Fashion store China, by 3GATTI Architects - Nest of Pearls

In thinking about where to house the technical equipment needed in such a store; lighting, speakers, sprinklers, cameras, etc., it was a natural progression to then think of this hanging ceiling as a permeable surface. The architect describes it as 'The permeable surface was the origin of the ethereal white ceiling; an ephemeral support for ephemeral objects.'  

The waves of ceiling are created by ten-thousand differently shaped unique pieces, each made of very thin, translucent fiberglass. This material was chosen due to its fire resistance factor, as well as the way it interacted with light reflections, creating an enigmatic landscape that is a spectacular source of play on light and dancing shadows. While the physical panels hang from the ceiling, their presence is felt in reflections on the floor, where it crosses over to the world of the customer...

SND Fashion store China, by 3GATTI Architects - Nest of Pearls

SND Fashion store China, by 3GATTI Architects - Nest of Pearls

SND Fashion store China, by 3GATTI Architects - Nest of Pearls

SND Fashion store China, by 3GATTI Architects - Nest of Pearls

SND Fashion store China, by 3GATTI Architects - Nest of Pearls

Source - archdaily.com
Images - archdaily.com
Photography - shen-photo.com

No comments:

Post a Comment