Story behind my idea
Location Play time with bubbles With all the research I have done and the understand that I have of architects and how the work, is that the space doesn't’t need to be grown up and professional it can still be fun, playful; functional. I have chosen to design a Designer fashion shop. I want to reinvent the boring shopping experience and make it something that the whole family enjoys. Something that would be just as fun and exciting as play time. When I was growing up the most fun I had was with balls, balloons and bubbles. That why I want to convert those childhood memories into a unforgettable shopping experience for one of the best known fashion designers Alexander McQueen. This should would represent the uniqueness of Alexander McQueen’s work. It would be just as unusual as his fashion designs that have made a huge impact to the way that fashion is seen and to the way that designers are going out of the box with their designs. The interior space would match the unique outfits.
It is known that most high end fashion shops are located in central London in places such as Oxford street, Regent street, Westfield London and much more. it has been established that if the shop looks out of the ordinary and unique people are more likely to go into them and browse and spend more there, they are then more likely to tell their friends and family. After considering the perfect location for my Alexander McQueen shop is Oxford street, due to being the most visited and most liked place to shop.
Alexander McQueen
Alexander McQueen’s work is very unique and over the top with bold and out of the ordinary designs. The most famous designs that he has designed are all influenced by the natural accruing things such as wildlife and flowers and also the naturally accruing shapes in the wild.
High end shops around London all have a very different feel and layout. Some are very plain and some are really over the top with detail. However all the shops have something that catches the shoppers eyes and makes it stand out.
Eden Project
The Eden project was inspired by J. Baldwin's Pillow Dome . Its located St Blazey , Cornwall The domes are multiple greenhouses, they are constructed from steel frames and Thermoplastic. The architect Nicholas Grimshaw had designed each pot to have its own heating system so that each dome could represent a different environment that is needed for the plants.
Pillow Dome
J. Baldwin is an American industrial designer and writer. Baldwin was a student of Buckminster Fuller , his work has been inspired by Fuller’s principles . Baldwin is noted inventor of the geodesic "pillow dome�.
Buckminster Fuller He has written and published numerous books and he has developed inventions, mainly architectural designs, the best known of which is the geodesic dome.
These geodesic domes are spherical or partially spherical shell structures based on a network of great circles on the surface of the dome. These domes have created challenges on how to make them air tight and rust proof. It took some time to get these right but the architects and designers have succeeded in making the perfect domes to house all sorts of tropical plants and keep the environment as the plants like it with minimal effort these domes are called the Eden project.
These are drawings/ sketches o hat I was inspired by after doing my research into different architects and buildings. I have taken parts of the already existing designs and made them into something that would go with what I would like to do and my brief.
These two designs have been created to combine nature and buildings in some cases skyscrapers together. These are all futuristic designs that can be build on land and in water. The designs look like grape like structures or bubbles. These bubbles also look playful and colourful,
When I looked at the designs for the structures that had nature in them I noticed that the structures skeleton wasn’t hidden. This has inspired me to do a similar design of spheres with the structures skeleton not hidden to add effect and character to the building.
I have looked at bubbles and how the link together to form a structure. I then have drawn my own bubble like structure with interlocking pods. These pods could become individual mini environments that could sustain different animals plants, fruits or vegetables. They could also be for different categories of objects.
Model one this is a model of what could be a shelter or it could have glass windows making it a unique shopping space. I have been inspired by architects who don’t hide the skeleton of the building . I think that the skeleton and the structure adds to the character of the building therefore I want my model to concentrate of the structure and how it adds to the building
These are sketches of what I think the model would look as a drawing and simplified. I have only taken the most important pats of the model I like the roof structure but I don’t like the scrunched up balls because they look messy and it wouldn’t look very attractive. I will be taking the roof structure and develop it further.
These are models that I have done of an inside of a shop. I have been inspired by the skeleton structure of the geodesic dome, this is the development of the roof structure from the previous model. I was inspired by the model that I made using scrunched up paper and card. I have developed the previous model into a roof structure the curves into a point at one end ,
Modern and unique design it brings a nice contemporary look.
All of these rubber balls and rubber band balls associate with childhood. The children use to try and bounce the rubber bouncy balls as high as they can go, they also come in a variety of different colors and images on them, I think this would be great for the circular objects in y shop to have different colors and graphics on them. It would bring an element of fun into the boring and tiring shopping experience
This is a model that I have been inspired to make after looking at the molecular structure of a vitamin. This could be a main feature in a shop or a staircase. I have decided to do a spherical model because I think that simple is more effective and it can be cooperated into the surroundings better than a straight line object.
This is what I have designed as an individual structure that would go in the shops as storage and . I think that this would work well if it was made in different sizes and colours. It would be like bunches of balloons grouped together to create a sculpture that could be used for displaying the clothes that the shop sells
I have been inspired by the structure of the DNA strand to draw a staircase the is free flawing and wouldn't distract the costumers from the rest of the shop but just add to the experience . These staircases look similar to the DNA structure, I would like to have a similar staircase but on a bigger and grander scale.
I have looked at water balloons and normal balloons and I got an idea of having individual pods suspended from the ceiling, the pods would have a hollow inside and that’s where all the clothes would be. The pods would also be different colors and sizes to add playful feel to the shop.
I have done a model to represent bunches of balloons after I researched them. I think that the model works well but it would be too bit to go into the shop and it wouldn’t have the same affect as loads off smaller spherical structures.
Steven Ma is an architect that specializes in 3D designs. This work is for an exhibition that was held in Hong Kong in 2010. in his designs the materials that he shows are like bubbles which also links into my work. My work links to Ma’s work in a way that he uses simple clean lines and he likes to design easy flowing spaces and sue curved lines. I think that this approach would suit a modern 21st century new and exciting shop.
Ec-O_Bench infuses nature into pedestrian traffic zones by creating a self-sustaining eco-system that envelopes sitters in living and growing plant-life. ec-O_Bench collects and filters rainwater and harnesses sunlight using thin-film photovoltaic, This design is a similar design of what I am trying to achieve. Steven Ma has design an eco friendly bench, I would like have the same idea of making my shop more eco friendly. I also like the futuristic but simple design that I think would go well in my shop.
This is a trail model for what I would like my interior space to look like. I have been inspired by clusters of grapes. Even though I like the grape like structure
Final outcome
This is my final outcome of a fashion shop, the individual spherical structures could be used to store and organize different types of clothing. This is a unique and existing way to store and present clothes. It also creates excitement when the shoppers enter the shop and see the different size inner structures that they are able to walk inside .
This is the floor layout off the shop. The three bubbles would also have smaller glass bubbles inside, this would allow the outside bubbles to be the height of the walls or a bit smaller and then they could house a range of smaller see through glass bubbles.