Light+Building 2012, Frankfurt (DE)

AtelierX is a high-end multi-brand store located in Ehrenstraße, the heart of the fashion district of Cologne. The project is the synthesis of the owners’ experience with the best German nightclubs and that of Mirco Cavallo, principal of Superstudio21, an architectural practice that boasts a very long series of important and successful restaurant and hospitality projects. The union of these strong personalities gave birth to a store that, respecting the pre-existing architecture’s history, captures some of its details and transforms them into signature elements of the interior design. The first dismantling and demolition works on-site revealed, on the wall that divides the property from the neighbouring one, two reinforcement structures which, crossing each other in an “X” shape, compose an architectural element so impactful that it became an integral part of the brand name – AtelierX. Slender geometrical structures alternate in the space, welcoming an accurate selection of clothes and accessories from among the best brands in fashion. A fundamental role is reserved for the light, which engages in a reflection game with the mirror and glass surfaces, multiplying the effect in an almost infinite repetition of lighting geometries and giving depth and dynamism to the space. “Reaching essentiality doesn’t only mean simplifying but having the delicate ability to give the environment a silent as well as distinctive character,” said Mirco Cavallo, emphasising the importance of creating a strong architecture that can not only display but elevate the objects.