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With a professional experience built up in the ambit of various
design projects, Alberto Apostoli
has converted the historical and long‐established store of CaldieroTerme
(Verona) into a space
that is lively, multisensorial and packed with exciting areas played out
between transparent effects
and chromed reflections.
The concept underlying this project is based on a combination of
creativity and rationality and
evolves through a refined use of form, light and colour. Rationality is
implicit in the use of squared
shapes executed in glass and metal; creativity is mainly to be seen in
three elliptic elements rising
from the floor to model the false ceilings, thus contributing to
separate the retail space into three
distinct areas: menswear, ladies’ wear and young fashion. Apostoli has
addressed this project by
drawing on a background of “marketing and communication know‐how” that
often
distinguishes his work together with different skills acquired in the
multi‐media sector. Important
elements of emotional communication with the clientele are, for example,
the back‐lit glass
display cabinets, the RGB lighting of the false ceilings and the
“honeycomb” display units in glass
and metal. The LEDs, whose vertical and horizontal light is used by
Apostoli as a proper surface
covering, run all along the main aisles of the store and its
furnishings, transforming the latter into
sources of indirect light. All furniture pieces have been custom‐made by
the architect’s own design
and are defined by an unusual combination of glass and pearly white
lacquered wood. A
particularly impacting element is provided by the large brown wall which
appears to be “boxed”
inside a glass display cabinet and whose interior supplies the backdrop
to the china cabinets and
furniture elements composing the till area. The large display table
positioned close to the entrance
is particularly striking and elegant with its all‐glass structure that
is partially illuminated from
within. A clever use of colour has been made: coffee and beige for the
resin flooring, dove grey for
the furniture and sections of the flooring and, finally, red – a flash
of colour that defines some
graphic details, as well as a most unusual chair that has been specially
created for this project.
The interior is dominated by two changing rooms created inside circular
elements and upholstered
in special back‐lit fabrics to create a three‐dimensional effect. A
space has also been dedicated to
a small bar built in stainless steel, to respond to the owner’s intent
to “spoil” customers.
For “L’Eliseo”, Alberto Apostoli has implemented a proper strategy of
“Brand design” because, as
well as handling the architecture and interior design‐related aspects,
he has in fact personally
followed the store’s communications strategy, including the creation of
its new logo and advertising campaign. The external facade of the
building has been completely transformed by
applying an original surface cladding that simulates the aspect of a
pearly white stone together
with custom‐made recessed spot lighting. Moreover, some additional
floor‐to‐ceiling windows
have been created, both on the side of the building corresponding to the
parking lots and adjacent
to the menswear department.
Access to the store can be gained through a dark brown partition, to the
right of which customers
can find the main entrance door in floor‐to‐ceiling glass; whereas on
the left a corner window
display gives customers a “first taste” of the particular spirit of this
venue. This is how the architect
sums up his project: “a retail space in which the emotional impact of
the space and the various
architectural and technological solutions complete the exciting
experience provided by the
products themselves. The perception of the different spaces tends to
dilate and extend the range
of vision and the various scenarios, making the products on display look
like truly refined and
artfully showcased decorative objects”.