Soap Boutique in New York
Portuguese architectural landmarks were the inspiration behind a shop design for soap manufacturer Claus Porto. In a narrow space in Manhattan’s Nolita district tacklebox architecture has designed a dramatically aligned room-within-a-room structure. Its arch form references the slender portals of the São Bento railway station in Porto; its faceted surface quotes the pyramid-shaped facade texture of the Casa dos Bicos in Lisbon. The structure, which measures less than 2 m in width, works at once as an eye-catcher and as a product display. Protruding and receding triangles are combined in a barrel vault form of almost 13 m in length. Depending on the incidence of light and the angle of inclination, the reflective pattern occurs in different tones from white to grey. Resembling a kaleidoscope in appearance, the space creates an optical effect that can be experienced, especially in the evening, even out on the street.
