FiL Books is an interior design project that Halukar Architecture / Mimarlik completed in 2015. The employer requested a space that would not only function as a photography and art books store but also a coffee shop. The design and application process spread over approximately 6 months.

The program that is distributed on four floors with a total area of 80m2 included the design of a bookstore, coffee shop, a kitchen, a workshop and storage areas as well as places for the users to hang out, study or drink coffee. One of the challenges of designing in such small spaces is the necessity of considering the ways in which each centimeter meets the required functions. We aimed for forming/creating a comfortable and bright / lighted environment while maintaining its cosiness. The critical aspects in the space organization that we prioritized were to have the books exhibited properly on a single wall that rises along the gallery void and the bar used comfortably.

In order to make all the functions work, we needed to make some reductions. Rather than preserving the existing staircase that connects two floors, we planned the main staircase in a way that would also serve to the upstairs of the store. While doing this, it was necessary to separate the areas of FiL Books from the residences on the upper floors. We used iron shutters that almost disappear when folded in the daytime and semi-transparently divide the space in the nighttime when the store is closed. It was aimed to give the feeling of spatial continuity and depth in both cases.

Maybe the most attractive and defining element in the space is the elephant’s tusk; a calibre pipe, painted in the corporate colour of FiL Books that goes along the wall and through the furniture. While this pipe tours all the space it turns into a lighting fixture, a hanger, a sofa arm, handrail, a bookshelf staircase, or a couch. As the featured element of the concept, it was crucial for us to use calibre pipe as the profile and to make sure each was fastened to the other with durable and clean details. Thanks to the professional approach of the production teams we collaborated with, the project was built/fabricated as neat as we had designed it. We enjoyed designing and applying the project of FiL Books as we enjoy drinking coffee and choosing books here now. One of the main partners of this is our employers for sure.

Architects: Halükar Architecture
Collaborators: Bilge Kalfa, Gamze İşcan, Erhan Sevinç, Işık Gülkaynak
Photographs: Depikt

http://www.archdaily.com/773813/fil-books-halukar-architecture