GUGGENHEIM SHOP BERLIN
A new spatial concept for the relatively small Guggenheim Shop in Berlin that integrates the shop, a café and space for both education and events. Of the designs submitted by the nine invited architects, this particular one was among the three finalists
Spatially, the room suggests a semi-private salon of the 19th century and the early Wunderkammer (chambers of wonder) in which there was no differentiation between object categories but rather a shared tribute to curiosity. Thus, a spatial design was developed that enforced the shop´s unique atmosphere as a semi-public ¨back-room¨ of the museum and radically mixed different activities such as drinking coffee, shopping and reading. Regardless of whether one buys a humourous merchandise product, an artist-edition or simply tastes a delicious cake while listening to an artist interview, it is the selection of the most extraordinary that unites these different activities and objects.
Spatial elements include a wooden-paneled wall that, on one side, provides niches where products can be displayed and guests can sit while creating a storage area on the other side. A curved pathway of curtains was placed in front of the windows to either close them or form small spaces, according to the use of the room. A family of small tables in different heights and with different tops could be easily configured for product presentation or café situations.
Collaboration: Matthias Tebbert and Peter Hils
Year: 2008
Client: Deutsche Guggenheim
