Brooklyn based architects Snarkitecture and fashion designer Richard Chai have teamed up to transform a retail space into an urban glacier using a single material, white architectural foam.
An existing structure was lined with foam and walls were sculpted by hand with hot wire cutters creating a landscape of light and shade perfect for housing Richard Chai’s latest fashion collection.
Designed as part of the Building Fashion series at HL23, a collaboration between architects and fashion designers, the space reveals a curatorial approach to architectural design and fashion. Niches and insertions into the cavernous foam walls become moments of display, telling the story of the collection piece by piece.
There’s just something so satisfying about the perfectly straight slices and rocky surfaces of the foam, however I did wonder about the use of such an energy intensive material for a temporary installation.
Thankfully, the architects have recognised this issue and the sculptural walls will be re-incarnated as rigid building insullation.
