The advancement of China‘s retail arena no longer manifests itself solely in its first tier cities, but more and more in affluent pockets elsewhere in the country. As a financial and corporate hub steeply on the rise since the 1990s, Shenzhen increasingly sees new venues in retail, hospitality, and in the cultural sector that signals both this stature and the changing lifestyle of its upper-crust demographic. The recent arrival of the sleek 1 WOR flagship store is another example of the rapid transformation of Hong Kong‘s neighbouring boomtown.

The boutique is the retail extension of a local fashion business platform that presents high-end fashion brands to China, the planet’s largest luxury market. The 1 WOR store occupies a modest unit at KK Mall, an upscale shopping haven in Shenzhen‘s financial district of Caiwuwei, featuring a nifty interior design by Guangzhou-based architecture practice Domani. Interestingly, the interior design takes cues from Pablo Picasso‘s painting Women’s head (1939) as interpreted in 3D by Lahore-based artist Omar Arqil. Defying the logical and orderly theory of present, Arqil’s artwork playfully juggles form, material and event texture to construct a different reality.

The outline of the space may have been used as the base of the interior design, but the spatial experience is anchored by the so-called four colour theorem which blurs the perception of all obvious dimensions. The wall colour extends onto the floor and ceiling, creating unexpected planes that pierce across the premises, while a mirrored ceiling duplicates the interventions below. Shelving and main prop provide an orthogonal geometry, composed by round, rectangular and distinct lines.

Designed by Domani
Images © Domani

https://superfuture.com/2018/06/new-shops/shenzhen-1-wor-store-opening/