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Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. Réel Contemporary Fashion in Shanghai, China by KokaistudiosApril 27th, 2020 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: Kokaistudios In a second project for Réel in Shanghai, a high-end shopping mall located on West Nanjing Road, Kokaistudios was commissioned to renovate and upgrade its third floor contemporary womenswear department. On identifying visibility and layout as particular challenges of the 500sqm space, designers injected layers and partitions into the formerly messy shop floor to create rhythm and pace, and invite discovery. Combining a solid core, mineral-inspired PVC, as well as brushed stainless steel finishes, all realized in neutral tones to best showcase the products themselves, the result fits seamlessly within the mall’s wider context, creating continuity and refinement. Visibility was a key challenge: with sole access to the floor via central escalators, visitors could see the entirety of the space immediately on arrival. With views through to the dead end beyond, as well as each and every tenant island in between, the original layout offered little in the way of intrigue, few incentives for discovery, and limited possibilities for circulation.  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen
 Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen Kokaistudios’ solution was to insert gates at regular intervals throughout the space. Spanning the width of the shop floor, these ‘windows of curiosity’ serve several functions: firstly, their robust columns partially block shoppers’ view into the store, thereby piquing curiosity to further explore. Second, alternating gates’ finishes between dark stone cladding and light-colored PVC creates a depth of field, and an attractive order and rhythm. Gates’ pillars invite alternative circulations, creating clear indicators of zoning and functionality where previously there was none. The central space is now occupied by cashier desks and fitting rooms, and is flanked by a curated selection of designer brands. Now a key focal point of the overall design, the area’s display tables, pedestals, and surfaces appear as sculptural entities: wrapped in stone-look PVC for crisp, clean corners, volumes of varying sizes are stacked at angles, seemingly emerging from the floor itself. Elsewhere, a combination of voids carved out from pillar blocks, as well as jutting cantilevered beams create useful shelf space. A floor-to-ceiling mirror adds to the geometric complexity of the area.  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen Kokaistudios’ brief extended to renovating the entrance area to the third floor’s VIP rooms. In order to thematically connect to the wider space, designers sought to echo the rhythm of the main shop floor by way of a corridor of alternating stainless steel surfaces and metal mesh panels, with side-lit white plaster walls behind. Framed by the end of the corridor, the mall’s logo – a gingko leaf, realized in brass and positioned above the section’s information desk – becomes a striking design feature of this exclusive area.  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen Working within a minimalist color palette and a deliberately limited range of materials, the renovation brings an elegant simplicity to this previously chaotic space. With rhythm and pace created by its staggered gates – or ‘windows of curiosity’ – the new design lends order, intriguingly offset by purposefully concealed areas and unexpected angles.  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen Kokaistudios’ fashion-forward renovation for Réel’s contemporary womenswear department takes a two-tier approach. First, it addresses and remedies shoppers’ all-important initial visual impression of the floor, through depth of field, rhythm, and reveals. At the same time, the design elevates the otherwise mundane material of PVC to a refined, sophisticated solution through creative installation and use. Viewed as a whole, this mall makeover is an ideal match for the wider Réel brand.  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Dirk Weiblen  Image Courtesy © Kokaistudios  Image Courtesy © Kokaistudios  Image Courtesy © Kokaistudios
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