Geometric Silhouettes

By Marina Correa

Photography:  Jonathan Richards - Picture Studios Ltd for Custo Barcelona store; Felipemardones for Munich store  

.

Two fashion label stores in two different continents have been designed by Barcelona-based design studio Dear Designs, where geometrical silhouettes play the models but the real show-stoppers are subtly intrinsic to the brand’s DNA...

The firm has created a dramatic geometrical ceiling structure, made from a complex assortment of abstract vectors, which resembles a retail theatre in Custo Barcelona’s first store in the UK.

.

But the studio wasn’t satisfied in only making a design statement; it delved deeper into the brand’s history and decided to anchor the store’s concept in its Mediterranean origins.

.

Re-interpreting the topography and geological features particular to the Mediterranean coast, the 1,600 sq ft store’s all-white palette aptly showcases the brand’s graphic-led kaleidoscope of prints and cutting-edge fabrics.

.

In terms of materials, the store features white timber wall panels, stainless steel hanging rails, grey resin flooring and interactive mirrors generating light and shadow, textures and volume, geometrical forms and silhouettes that reflect the intrinsic values of the brand.

The other boutique designed by the same architectural firm is Munich, the fashion and sports footwear store, located in Santiago, Chile and is inspired by a stadium. Bright illumination and a geometrically-designed hanging metal structure in the shape of X’s conspicuously frame the store’s interior, where lines are blurred between the boutique’s window display and furniture.

.

The fractal design in the form of infinitely repeated X’s has been devised keeping in mind the brand’s logo and provides a depth, albeit subtly, to the geometrical skeleton. The fractal design lends itself to plenty of niches, where each shoe is nestled, sans visible support, and seems to be floating in animated suspension.

.

Another notable aspect of this project is the use of a simplistic material palette. The perimeter structure is sheathed in sheets of glossy white lacquered iron, interior lettering in Corian, Barrisol stretched ceiling, white polyurethane resin with a glossy varnished finish flooring and white skin and iron sheets are used for the furnishings.

Both projects have been bagging awards and we aren’t really surprised, given their designs’ inherent strengths.