Description of project by Adamo Faiden Arquitectos
The result is an interior characterized by classic architypes, a pale red color palette, and stainless-steel elements.
An existing column is used as the starting point for the store’s layout. From this centralized column, 12 arches stretch towards the perimeter walls. This series of arches function as a key element in creating a sense of organizational hierarchy, establishing visual separators within the space. The arches are clad in a clay based plaster with a subtle gradient color, ranging from a lighter base to a darker shade. Illumination from between the arches further emphasizes the gradient effect.
Expanding out from the centralized column, a sink in a circular shape establishes itself as the natural meeting point of the store. The sink, which is an integral part of all Aesop’s stores, appears as a hovering water mirror reflecting the light and colors of the ceiling. Made from polished stainless steel and glass fiber, the sink becomes a focal element, while simultaneously allowing for an optimized flow of people within the space.
The walls, ceiling, and arches are clad in a pink-pigmented clay based plaster, giving the space a royal rose-color. The clay plaster is delivered by Clayworks, and sourced from South West counties of England. This simple and clear color palette is contrasted by extensive use of steel in the other custom elements of the store.
The contrasts created by the rough surfaces of the walls against the soft, polished expression of the clear stainless-steel shapes, the play with color gradients, as well as the changes in light throughout the space, all underline a sense of depth to the design. Combined with the traditional arches and futuristic elements such as the sink, the design aims to trigger customer’s sense of curiosity.
Aesop Duke of York Square is the seventh Aesop store designed by Snøhetta. Other stores include Aesop Prinsens Gate (Oslo), Aesop Homansbyen (Oslo), Aesop Grabenstraße (Düsseldorf), Aesop Fasanenstraße (Berlin), Aesop ION (Singapore), and Aesop Raffles City (Singapore).
Snøhetta has completed its first permanently built project in England, situated in Chelsea, in west London. The 108-square-meter retail space, dubbed Aesop Duke of York Square, is the latest addition to Aesop’s series of boutiques around the world. Tucked behind a parade of shops on the King's Road, in Chelsea, Aesop Duke of York Square is part of a luxury shopping area beside the Saatchi Gallery.
A large column set in the centre is the starting point of the design for Snøhetta's Oslo office, placing 12 arching sections of wall – Is it a reminiscent of the concrete forms used by Oscar Niemeyer? or are they 12 classic-postmodern arches in plaster?– around its edges. The arches splay out across the ceiling and touch the walls, to integraiting all elements into the design.
More information
Snøhetta is an architecture, landscape, and interior design studio with offices in Oslo, Norway, and New York City, USA. Founded in 1989, it is led by Craig Dykers and Kjetil Thorsen. The studio, named in honour of Mount Snøhetta, the highest peak in the Dovrefjell mountains of Norway, has approximately 100 collaborators working on large-scale international projects across a wide range of typologies. Their approach is deeply collaborative and transdisciplinary, bringing together architects, designers, engineers, and landscape professionals to explore multiple perspectives depending on the nature of each project.
Snøhetta has completed a series of world-renowned cultural and landmark projects, including the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt, the Oslo Opera House and Ballet, and the Lillehammer Art Museum in Norway. Current projects include the National Pavilion of the September 11 Memorial Museum at the World Trade Center site in New York, as well as urban and landscape developments that aim to merge local identity, sustainability, and public experience.
In 2004, Snøhetta was awarded the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, and in 2009, the Mies van der Rohe Award. The studio is the only practice to have won the World Architecture Award for Best Cultural Building twice in consecutive years: in 2002 for the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and in 2008 for the Oslo Opera House and Ballet, consolidating its international prestige.
Kjetil Trædal Thorsen (born 1958 on the coastal island of Karmøy, Norway) is a co-founder of the studio and a multiple award-winning architect. He is a visionary and humanist designer who has redefined the boundaries of contemporary practice. Under his leadership, Snøhetta has produced iconic, sustainable structures that are highly sensitive to their cultural context, combining technological innovation with a profound environmental awareness. Thorsen’s work is recognized for its focus on social interaction, sustainability, and the creation of spaces that foster human connection and sensory experience, establishing a benchmark in contemporary global architecture.
Craig Dykers (born 1961 in Frankfurt, Germany) is also a co-founder of the studio and director of its New York office. Snøhetta has earned a reputation for maintaining a deep integration of landscape, architecture, and urban experience across all its projects. Key works include the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt, the Oslo Opera House and Ballet, the National Pavilion of the September 11 Memorial Museum in New York, and the redesign of Times Square. Professionally and academically active, Dykers has been a member of the Norwegian Association of Architects (NAL), the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and the Royal Society of Arts in England. He has served as a diploma juror at the Architectural College in Oslo and as a distinguished professor at City College, New York. He has delivered numerous lectures across Europe, Asia, and the Americas, and has undertaken public art installation projects, many of which explore the interplay between context, landscape, and human experience.
Published on:
November 12, 2017
Cite:
"Niemeyer or postmodern arches? New Aesop shop in Duke of York Square by Snøhetta" METALOCUS.
Accessed
<https://www.metalocus.es/en/news/niemeyer-or-postmodern-arches-new-aesop-shop-duke-york-square-snohetta>
ISSN 1139-6415
