Haight clothing
The 260 sq m retail restoration project for the fashion brand Haight Clothing inspired us to design a contemplative lightscape, an investigation about light and about the sensory perception of spaces, a place where an internal universe can be imagined.
Our interest in thinking architecture as a choreography of experience for the discovery of space led us to develop the character of this project which is mainly defined by a spatial sequence, that close and open towards the sky, allowing the user to experience a permanent change through simple forms and simple materials.
The plot had a pre-existing building, whose structure was maintained and became a guideline for an opaque facade. What from the outside is seen as a rigid geometric, inside becomes quite flexible when entering the building through a series of rooms of different shapes, with the sky sometimes as a ceiling. The space in between these rooms forms a maze-like structure, with an intimate circulation that leads to the dressing rooms.
Surfaces are just the result of adding or unveiling layers of materials. The rough texture of the walls appears as a reinterpretation of ordinary landscapes and cityscapes, while the sandstone used as object in the store is a reminder of
the beaches Haight Clothing originates from. This stone formation is characterized by a spontaneous accumulation of sand layers deposited through time. Our work was precisely to guide a handmade process of sculpting, making this natural feature evident in space.
