Architecture practice Snøhetta stuck to natural materials for the fit-out of the Holzweiler boutique in Copenhagen, incorporating subtle references to the fashion brand’s Norwegian heritage.
Snøhetta is a long-term collaborator of Holzweiler’s, having designed the company’s flagship store and showroom in Oslo, as well as a number of its pop-up shops, runway sets and its digital identity.
For Holzweiler’s first international outpost in Copenhagen, Snøhetta followed the concept of “tracing” – devising an interior scheme that shows traces of the brand’s Norwegian roots alongside the minimalist aesthetic found in its previous retail spaces.
“Reminiscent of a memory or feeling that remains, the idea of ‘traces’ evokes an emotional sense of the brand’s beloved heritage as it travels to a new city,” the practice said.
At the centre of the 100-square-metre store is a tall, hollow sculpture by Norwegian artist Ingeborg Riseng, which shoppers can step into. Its undulating outer walls are fitted with display shelves and coated in a smooth layer of clay, while the inside has a rough, craggy surface.
An oakwood display plinth winds its way around the periphery of the store, eventually connecting to a curved timber partition at the rear of the floor plan.
Behind the wall lies a changing area with cubicles and curtains created by Danish textile design studio Tronhjem Rømer.
The fabric is digitally printed with subtle yellow and pale blue stripes, designed to evoke the shifting shades of the Norwegian sky.
To contrast the store’s largely natural material palette, Snøhetta added some industrial-style finishing touches like metal clothing rails and custom strip lighting, developed by Swedish brand Ateljé Lyktan.
Both the floors and ceilings were preserved from the store’s previous fit-out.
Other recent projects by Snøhetta include Bolder Star Lodges, a quartet of wooden cabins that overlook a fjord in Norway.
Meanwhile in Denmark, the practice employed boat construction techniques to create a timber community centre in Esbjerg.
The photography is by Magnus Nordstrand, courtesy of Snøhetta and Holzweiler.
