AESOP GREVILLE STREET
2010
‘instead of following a consistent arrangement, the grid was eroded and disrupted, allowing a textured and unpredictable pattern to emerge. The ever-changing plywood pieces were intricately finger jointed together in a seemingly random yet systematic manner.’
Greville Street in Prahran once held a similar allure to New York's West Village – a lively, gritty neighbourhood where being effortlessly cool was the norm. Embracing this spirit, this Aesop project deploys computer numerical controlled (CNC) cut plywood, a sustainable and unassuming material primarily used in the industry for structural bracing. The plywood was showcased en masse, forming a grid that was intentionally fragmented to accommodate the varying sizes of Aesop's diverse product categories.
This design also had to incorporate the brand’s first online fulfillment and dispatch service, for which pigeon-holes were employed as a language. However, instead of following a consistent arrangement, the grid was eroded and disrupted, allowing a textured and unpredictable pattern to emerge.
The ever-changing plywood pieces were intricately finger jointed together in a seemingly random yet systematic manner.
The documentation for this project resembled a Meccano set rather than traditional architectural plans, guiding the contractor on how to assemble the layers in a specific order.
The singularity of the blond plywood continues into the suspended counter (with timber basin) that hangs from the dominant backlit product wall. A central island combining display and counter elevates the precision of manufacturing as a mnemonic device that perfectly holds and foregrounds bottles, vessels and boxes to engage.
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RETAIL
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COMPLETE
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WURUNDJERI | PRAHRAN | VICTORIA
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BUILDER | CBD CONTRACTING
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER | CO-STRUCT
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RODNEY EGGLESTON