eyewear Archives

Sculptural custom-made furniture adds artistic flourishes to this otherwise minimal showroom and head office, designed by Spanish interiors studio Isern Serra for eyewear brand Gigi Studios.

Isern Serra was tasked with creating a holistic scheme for the 900-square-metre headquarters, occupying one floor of a building in the town of Sant Cugat del Vallès just north of Barcelona.

Isern Serra has filled the Gigi Studios headquarters with custom furniture

The brief called for a design that creates a sense of spaciousness and comfort while reflecting founder Patricia Remo’s vision of Gigi Studios as a brand.

“It is also serene, warm and elegant and conceptually close to the idea of a studio and away from the concept of a traditional office, without losing the practicality and functionality,” Isern Serra explained.

Rows of desks were replaced with more intimate work areas

The building’s rectangular floor plan features a central service core housing the lifts and toilets, with the workspaces, meeting rooms, kitchen and showroom occupying the surrounding O-shaped open space.

Serra and his team positioned the kitchen and showroom at one end of the plan and placed the meeting rooms and client areas at the other, leaving the longer sides open to optimise circulation.

Concrete bases for the work tables were cast in situ

Various bespoke furniture pieces, conceived by Isern Serra as “small works of art”, bring a distinct personality to the different formal and informal spaces.

These interventions were designed to embody Gigi Studios’ design ethos while standing out against the warm and minimal backdrop.

“The project aims to experiment with the limits of the workspace and seek a new concept that goes hand in hand with the idea of domus and museum,” Isern Serra explained.

Curtains can be used to cordon off the lounge area

A large circular sofa framed in stainless steel provides a bold statement in one of the reception areas.

The sculptural piece fulfils a dual function as a seating area and a space for working, with tables and book storage integrated into the backrest around the perimeter.

Similarly, the building’s central core is wrapped in a layer of built-in storage units including circular stainless-steel niches that incorporate shelves for displaying books and materials.

Rather than a typical office layout with rows of workstations, the large open spaces are separated into more intimate zones with a more domestic scale.

A Boa Pouf by Sabine Marcelis provides informal seating

Next to the lobby is a design area featuring tables made from concrete that was cast in situ. Task seating surrounds the work table and a taller table is accompanied by stools, while lenses for the different glasses are stored in a custom-made unit.

The second workspace features a large C-shaped sofa with a concrete base that was also cast in situ. Custom-made tables and one of Sabine Marcelis’s Boa Poufs complete this lounge-style space, which can be visually separated from the rest of the office using curtains on either side.

The showroom is visible from the office through a circular window

A circular window with rounded edges provides a glimpse of the showroom, which is dominated by two sculptural tables with concrete tops supported by rough chunks of travertine stone.

A built-in tiered display is used to highlight different Gigi Studios’ eyewear. The rest of the collection is housed in a backlit cabinet, while a mirror-fronted unit conceals a large screen used for presentations.

The kitchen is located next to the showroom so that the two spaces can easily be used together for events. Here, a homely, Mediterranean feel is created via a five-metre-long sharing table, custom-made alongside the accompanying stools.

Display tables in the showroom are held up by rough chunks of travertine

The sizeable kitchen island is finished in micro-cement and features a curved base that enhances its sculptural presence.

A curved corridor incorporating a sofa niche on one wall provides access to offices and a meeting room positioned to have the best views of the surrounding countryside.

Internal columns are used to support one end of concrete tables built in each of the workspaces, furnished with classic designs including Marcel Breuer’s Wassily and Cesca chairs.

Large sharing tables allow for communal eating in the kitchen

Interior designer Isern Serra founded his self-titled studio in Barcelona in 2008 and works across architecture, interiors and industrial design.

Previous projects including a rose-coloured shop for Barcelona’s Moco Museum that was based on a computer-generated image and a minimalist office for digital artist Andrés Reisinger, which was named small workplace interior of the year at the 2023 Dezeen Awards.

The photography is by Salva López with art direction by Aasheen Mittal.

Reference

Sustainable News

Making eyewear from ghost fishing gear

By Zarkon Group,29/10/2023

Spotted: Discarded or ‘ghost’ fishing nets are the deadliest form of ocean plastic. Made from long-lasting materials, they continue catching marine life for over 500 years after they enter the ocean according to social enterprise Waterhaul. And a recent study calculated that around two per cent of all fishing gear is lost to the ocean, amounting to 218 square kilometres of trawl nets, 2,963 square kilometres of gillnets, and 75,049 square kilometres of purse seine nets each year.

Waterhaul is tackling this problem by collecting ghost gear and converting it into eyewear. Discarded equipment is collected from rocky and remote coastlines – in Cornwall and elsewhere in England and Wales – that accumulate a lot of plastic and debris. The organisation is also putting in place arrangements to collect used gear in-port, preventing it from entering the sea in the first place.

After the waste material is collected, it is put through a mechanical recycling process to make an injection-mould-ready material that is used in the frames of sunglasses and optical glasses. Different types of net have different properties, and this can be used to Waterhaul’s advantage when designing the products, which are finished with mineral glass, rather than cheap plastic, lenses.

In addition to producing the eyewear, which is marketed both B2B and through a direct-to-consumer model, Waterhaul also makes litter pickers and clean-up kits from discarded nets. These are sent to communities who can use them to conduct their own ocean clean-up projects.

Discarded fishing gear is a major issue, and at Springwise we have previously spotted innovations such as chairs and clothing from discarded nets.

Written By: Matthew Hempstead

Reference

Interior Design

Nina + Co brings biomaterials into MONC eyewear store in London

By Zarkon Group,10/11/2022

Cornstarch-foam shelves meet mycelium display plinths in this London store that Nina + Co has designed for bioplastic eyewear brand MONC.

Nestled among a parade of high-end shops in Marylebone, MONC sells glasses made from bio-acetate – an acetate produced completely without fossil fuels – which are packaged using recycled leather cases and compostable cornstarch foam.

Exterior of MONC eyewear store in Marylebone, London — The first MONC eyewear location sits along a row of shops in Marylebone

When local studio Nina + Co was brought in to design MONC’s debut store, the team was keen to incorporate biomaterials throughout the interior, while also taking the brand’s short-term lease of the retail unit into account.

“Circularity was key,” said the studio. “Almost everything we brought into that building was entirely bio-based or recycled.”

“The furniture is expertly built to last but can be disassembled for re-use, recycling or return to the earth as nourishment.”

Interior of MONC eyewear store in Marylebone, London — The store features a ceiling installation made from cornstarch foam

Upon entering the store, visitors find themselves under an undulating ceiling installation crafted from corrugated panels of cornstarch foam.

Thicker blocks of the material were used to create rows of squishy-looking shelves, which can be used for packaging or simply dissolved in water when they eventually start to show signs of wear and tear.

MONC eyewear store in Marylebone, London has shelves made from cornstarch foam — The foam was also used to form small shelves

Display plinths made out of mycelium – the vegetative part of a fungus – were dotted across the store to showcase different eyewear models.

In between the shelves, a couple of long mirrors are balanced on hunks of concrete that were salvaged from roadworks nearby.

The craggy concrete was chosen as a subtle nod to the rugged Dolomite mountains, which can be seen from the Italian town where all MONC eyewear is produced.

Nina + Co worked closely alongside Welsh manufacturers Smile Plastics and London joiner EJ Ryder to design the store’s recycled PET island and bench seat, which are an apricot-orange hue.

As both furniture pieces were joined with mechanical bolts rather than glues, they can easily be taken apart, flat packed and transported to a different MONC store for reuse.

Walls throughout the interior were finished with VOC-free clay paint while the unit’s existing floor was covered with a water-based sealant.

“Previous tenants had ripped up their floor to leave a plywood subfloor, with markings of the adhesive still evident and some paint bucket outlines,” the studio explained.

“After a test patch, we were convinced that a simple water-based sealant would give it a beautiful depth and sheen with the industrial feel of concrete [while being] kinder to the planet and the budget.”

MONC is one of five projects shortlisted in the small retail interior category of this year’s Dezeen Awards.

It’s going head-to-head with the Durat showroom by Linda Bergroth, which is decked out in an unusual mix of colours, and Aesop’s Yorkville store by Odami with its oxblood-red balusters.

The photography is by Handover.

Reference

Interior Design

Child Studio channels Soho’s peep show booths for Cubitts eyewear store

By Zarkon Group,13/06/2021

Featuring linoleum floors, Formica-clad walls and a deep red basement, Soho’s peep show booths served as inspiration for the atmospheric interior of this London eyewear store by Child Studio for spectacle-maker Cubitts.

Perched on the corner of Marshall Street in London’s Soho neighbourhood, the store occupies one of the early 19th-century buildings that form the area’s narrow streets.

Checked linoleum floor and wood-panelled walls in Cubitts eyewear store — Black and white checkered linoleum flooring features throughout the store

The store is spread out over a small ground floor and basement space lined by a narrow staircase.

In terms of practical requirements, the store needed to incorporate a display of the 100 different coloured acetate chips that customers can choose from to create bespoke frames.

London-based Child Studio designed a space for Cubitts that aims to reflect the history of the local area and create a customer journey that would encourage people to explore the basement space.

Wood-panelled walls and acrylic display stands in eyewear store by Child Studio — A wall-mounted display case holds 100 different coloured acetate chips

“Cubitts wants each of its shops to have a unique design reflecting the history of the local neighbourhood,” Child Studio co-founder Alexy Kos told Dezeen.

“The brand has a strong connection to London, where its glasses are made, and to Modernism as the guiding principle to its design aesthetic.”

Checkered floor, black stool and wood-panelled walls in Cubitts London shop

To design the interior, the studio drew upon Soho’s colourful history as a destination for massage parlours, adult cinemas and sex shops in the postwar era.

“Gambling, drinking, religious and political dissent, clubbing and prostitution were all, at varying times, peculiar Soho specialities,” said the studio.

“We have focussed our research on Soho’s heyday in the postwar era, looking at the interiors of the neighbourhood’s iconic venues, such as the Formica-clad Bar Italia and the legendary jazz venue 100 Club, with its all-red interiors.”

Desk nook with clock and glasses display in eyewear store by Child Studio — Formica laminate partitions with aluminium trims divide up the space

Referencing the peep show booths of Soho, the store incorporates low partitions clad in a wood-effect Formica laminate and trimmed with aluminium to form a maze-like environment.

Display areas with illuminated acrylic shelving that showcase the spectacles and the colourful acetate chips are recessed into the walls. Lightbox signage integrated into the metal-trim cladding and black and white checkered linoleum flooring add to the store’s nostalgic ambience.

An antique Caori cocktail table designed by Vico Magistretti in 1961 serves as a focal point on the ground floor.

Featuring a brushed aluminium tabletop and several concealed compartments for records and magazines, the piece was specially sourced by Child Studio and adapted to include a raised podium so that it is better serves the retail environment.

Leather chair with red glasses display in Cubitts store — The basement is saturated with a deep red colour

“Every project tells a unique story and we always look for rare and unusual furniture pieces to add depth and authenticity to the narrative,” said the design team.

“The desk lamp is another mid-century find, created by the Czech designer Josef Hurka for the manufacturer Napako in the 1960s.”

Acryclic glasses display with red velvet curtain in eyewear store by Child Studio — Limited-edition sunglasses are displayed on shelves clad in aluminium-effect Formica

A narrow staircase leads to the basement, which is saturated in a deep red colour. Customers are guided to an eye examination room concealed behind a velvet curtain by neon signs.

Cubitt’s moody basement lounge area is lit by the Conelight floor lamp by the British designer Ronald Homes and furnished with chrome and leather chairs designed by Giovanna Modonutti.

A collection of limited-edition sunglasses is displayed on illuminated shelves clad in aluminium-effect Formica that create a theatrical effect in the dark red surrounds.

Neon peep show sign in Cubitts Soho store — A neon peep show sign hangs at the entrance to the eye examination room

Previously, the studio run by Kos and Che Huang has channelled the look of a 1950s cafe inside a vegan pizza restaurant in west London and transformed a former London post office into a sushi restaurant with a 1960s interior.

“We like to use the word ‘cinematic’ to describe the spaces designed by Child Studio,” Kos told Dezeen. “With every project, we aim to capture a particular mood and atmosphere, rather than trying to recreate an interior from a specific era.”

Photography is by Felix Speller and Child Studio.

Reference

eyewear

Isern Serra completes “serene” office for eyewear brand Gigi Studios

Making eyewear from ghost fishing gear

Nina + Co brings biomaterials into MONC eyewear store in London

Child Studio channels Soho’s peep show booths for Cubitts eyewear store

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