Page 113 - AIT0922_E-Paper

Entwurf • Design A.P.O., ES-Barcelona
Bauherr • Client Sivasdescalzo, ES-Barcelona
Standort • Location Calle Bailén 18, ES-Barcelona
Nutzfläche • Floor space 280 m 2
Fotos • Photos José Hevia, ES-Barcelona
Mehr Infos auf Seite • More info on page 150

SNEAKER STORE

IN BARCELONA

The new Sivasdescalzo store in Barcelona has a sacral
and also a cool look. With it, the A.P.O. design agency
around Antoni Pallejà gives the sneakers fan community
around the world an on-site venue to touch and pay ho-
mage to the objects. The name of the store, Si vas des-
calzo – meaning “If you go barefoot” in English – contains
the design philosophy: pure, human and sensuous.

T he sequence of the rooms and the materials that have been used
succeed in emanating an almost sacred aura which is, however,
entirely anchored in the here and now, in the street, in streetwear, as it
were. The industrial appearance of the two-storey envelope of the exi-
sting building makes the design look down-to-earth. Layer by layer,
something new and surprising is added to the background level consi-
sting of bricks. Inside, the room levels dissolve into individual furniture
objects. Reposing cubes of terrazzo are surrounded by mobile stainless
steel and glass shelves. The spatial dynamism of the interior design is
focussed on a nine-metres high patio that has been lined with greenish
marble. The lighting design and reflections make the sneakers fans glide
through a kind of temple while, from the corners of his eyes, they keep
being magically attracted by the light-flooded exterior space opened to-
wards the top. The brand – situated between elegance and coolness – is
Grundriss • Floor plan also reflected in the composition of materials rich in contrast. Like my-
sterious side aisles of a church nave, the storage rooms – concealed be-
hind mirrored black surfaces – border the “holy” main hall. Notwith-
standing all the festive “ceremony”, the design always remains closely
oriented on the clientele, the fan community – on the haptics and the
sensuous experience provided. The store is thus not only designed as a
sales room but also intended as a bar and a party venue as well as a
meeting point for the sneakers community. Conciliatory and harmo-
nious, a space has been produced that welcomes and unites followers
from all over the globe. Opposites are dissolved; cold, industrial mate-
rials forge a warm partnership with hand-made surfaces. One may find
it bewildering that a pair of shoes is turned into a cult object – but here,
in this temple of the world of sneakers and streetwear, one is allowed
to feel understood. Even though the main room is located on the lower
level, it feels real and ideological in the open space, provided that one
has at least brought the small purse along. All this is held together and
protected by a glittering luminous ceiling with the scenery moving bet-
Schnitt • Section ween diffuse, dreamlike light and well-positioned light accents.

AIT 9.2022 • 113