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Architects: FATHOM
- Area: 150 m²
- Year: 2020
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Photographs:Tatsuya Tabii
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Manufacturers: BEAUTY GARAGE, KANASE, KY Tile Co., Ltd., TAKARA BELMONT, Tajima
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Construction: MID DESIGN, Shinji Utsubo
Text description provided by the architects. I took the elevator up to the fifth floor from the back street of a tenant building facing the arcade on Hondori in Hiroshima City. The first time I saw the skeleton of the building after the demolition of the existing store, I was struck by the view, which was completely different from the view on the ground.
The long and narrow space had windows on both sides in the longitudinal direction, and the infrastructure equipment such as outdoor units and ducts from the rooftop of other buildings were spread out all over the space, giving us a glimpse of the beauty of factory architecture. In contrast to the bustle and glamour on the ground, I found this scenery very attractive. I thought of the landscape created by the collection of infrastructures uniformly painted in beige as a modern urban desert, and wondered if it would be possible to create a clear, liquid space like an oasis born there.
The cutting booth, which is the main function of the salon, is located in the central core of the long and narrow space, and the partitions between them are made of blue transparent acrylic to bring liquid moisture to the space. The mirrors are trimmed into a large diagonal shape, based on the parallelogram shape of the sunlight entering through the window. The view of daily salon work is cut into the layers of blue acrylic water surface, as if light is shining through it.
The days of self-restraint by Corona. With the development of the Internet, it has become possible to hold meetings in remote locations, and the number of people who work from home has increased, so there is no longer any doubt that everything can be done at home. It has become clear that if the service for the client's desire is so-called simple and one-dimensional, it can be experienced in the home space. So, what is the role of commercial space? Isn't it "enrichment"? I feel firsthand that people will not come to a salon unless they can experience a sense of richness and a sense of the unusual by being able to enjoy an extraordinary feeling that they cannot usually feel for just a moment or by weaving various services into one service in a deep and multi-layered layer.
In this salon space, I hope that people will not only get their hair cut, but also reset themselves from the hustle and bustle of daily life in the liquid, unusual space with the sunlight filtering through the trees, take in new knowledge and culture, and welcome their new hair style with a dignified mind and heart. A hanging garden like an oasis full of greenery floating in the middle of the urban space. A story that cannot be experienced online or at home, but can only be experienced here, begins the moment the elevator door opens on the fifth floor today.
