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Architects: FTL Design Engineering Studio
- Year: 2012
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Photographs:William Cho, Louis Vuitton
Text description provided by the architects. Louis Vuitton is a world renowned brand know for it’s commitment to fashion, lifestyle, culture, Art + Architecture. It's not surprising that an innovative concept was envisioned for their South East Asian flagship store. Located at Marina Bay Sands, in Singapore, the project is housed in one of the “Crystal Pavilions” of the mixed-use complex designed by Safdie Architects. The radical design for a stand alone store has become the first of it’s kind, an “Island Maison”. Stepping up to this task, famed interior designer, Peter Marino continues his on going relationship with LVMH to realize this vision. The concept store was to act as a gallery for LV products and embody the feel of high fashion elegance and the nautical aesthetic for which LVMH has become known.
The selected location presented a number of design challenges, the chief of which was control of an over abundance of tropical sun. The "Crystal Pavilion" is an asymmetric steel-framed glass building with irregularly angled facades. This combined with it’s location, one degree north of the equator, the structure receives sun from all sides. To solve this problem, FTL Design Engineering Studio was brought on. The result is a solar shading concept of continuous linear white bands that provide the desired shading, UV protection for the handbags and serves as the backdrop on which for the interior build-out. The shading system covers all interior wall and ceiling elements and calls to mind the sails and masts of a sailboat. Though not strictly nautical, the atmosphere is Marino and LV all the way.
