SANTAS
The concept of the project was originated from the same idea that gave the name to the store. The symbolic and playful spirit of SANTAS (y no tan...) DE LA MODA -in English FASHION SAINTS (and not so)-, enables the fusion of historical and contemporary elements of architecture, art, photography and fashion.
In this “fashion cathedral” (a combination of a clothing store with an art installation) we work from a negative space perspective. We recreate an independent space from an existing container: "a box inside another box”. When visitors enter the store, they distinguish a place which is organized by a multi-purpose, modular and light metallic structure that creates a virtual space. This presents an open, neutral, highly flexible and visually clean atmosphere.
In the center of the space, a volume entirely covered in mirror serves as a counter and also organizes the store traffic flow.
The mirror reflects the seemingly endless metallic structure and helps to create a visually wider shop aspect.
Inside the installation, clothes are exhibited across individual hangers that can be placed, according to needs, in different ways along the metallic network. The clothes let the space flow, giving consistency to the intervention. Hanging shelves and mirror cubes were designed to complement the exhibition of small items, such as shoes and accessories.
The curtains (personalized and handmade customized) define and divide the dressing-rooms into zones, serving as the backdrop of the whole project. The use of textures and hues (black and white) together with lighting design enables the creation of a warm environment and -apparently- simple, which is very easy to modify when changing collections.
A series of spotlights shaded by the filar structure define diverse spatial rhythms. The chandelier (located in the main ship) is framed by a virtual dome and hanging LED tubes that are used as complementary composite elements within the spatial conception.
The concept aims to create a space that capture visitor’s attention from the outside. The layering of different vertical and horizontal elements unconsciously causes visitors to recognize the space variation, creating a sense of depth and exploration feeling, raising an experience of transience, unpredictability and contemplation, concepts that are relevant both to fashion and architecture.
