“Re-design The Basics”
Bananain Concept Store in Shanghai was designed by Some Thoughts Spatial Design and Research Office.
The exploration between “basic” and “re-design” is a process of re-thinking and re-defining. Moreover, it is a rhetorical question towards a certain stereotype and a dialectic of one’s self-experience.
To this day, Middle Huaihai Road has been the epitome of Shanghai’s cultural and historical process, as well as a landmark where a variety of consumer brands choose to station.
When designing the Bananain Concept Shanghai, Some Thoughts’s inspiration comes from the existing architecture and the diverse cultural background embedded in the site by re-examining the basic elements.
The designer meticulously curated a retail space that appeals to the contemporary trends and broadcasts brand’s vision.
The designer responds to the definition of “basics” by employing the ordinary units to avoid any possible interventions to the space, in this way, the public could connect and have a dialogue with the interior intimately. Instead of the common understanding of columns being the supporting components to beams, it has been reinterpreted, followed by the establishment of a new spatial convention in the design.
The designer aspires to introduce two forms of columns, combining its functionality of being supporting components and the interpretation of being the design narrative.
Vertical uprightness is the most straightforward expression of gravity. The space is processed into a few specifications through the homogeneous arrangement of column grid,
The permeability juxtaposed with structure are designed to present the visitors with a a new exploration at the psychological and physical level, encouraging people to meander freely and experience the scale endowed in the space by proportion to their own measure.
The essence of daily an object has often been wrapped in its ordinaries so that we forget to pay attention. In designing the partials and materials of Bananain Concept Store Shanghai, Some Thoughts tried to re-process the objects often seen in our daily life and change the way they normally applied in so as to differentiate the usage towards its original settings. The substitution of partials exists in human’s behavioral interaction, of which has been injected in a humorous way to arouse people’s understanding towards “basics”.
“Re-design the Basics” is not only an expression of design concept, but also an output that has defined Bananain since its institution by punctuating the significance of better life necessities.
Meanwhile by enabling more people to live a more decent life, this ideology has become a new bottom line in the brand philosophy. Some Thoughts applied the brand value in the spatial design to inspire visitors to resonate with the space in a more profound way from multiple dimensions the interior equipped.
Location: 858 Middle Huaihai Road, Shanghai
Interior and Installation Design: Some Thoughts Spatial Design and Research Office
Principal Designer: Jingze Li
Design Team: Zhen Xie, Jin Qiang, Li lianlinshen
Area: 150 sqm
Lighting Design: Shenzhen Jizhi Lighting Co., Ltd.
Construction Firm: Guangzhou Yijing Decor Industrial Co., Ltd, Guangzhou Zhencheng Shelf Co., Ltd
Photos courtesy: Shao Feng
Some Thoughts
Founded in Shanghai by Jingze Li in 2020, Some Thoughts is an Spatial Design and Research Office. Some Thoughts’ architects constantly explore and estimate the uniqueness of any design concepts, to break through the stereotypes and regulations in the light of direct, pure penetrations of design.
The Space, Installations, Details and Materials are the embodiments of human’s imaginations, of which are amorphous and boundless. Some Thoughts aspire to transcend the relationships between contemporary space and its partials within by our perceptions for design, to discern or reserve the occasionality embedded in each concept, to avert the dissonance and mediocrity in our projects.
