The retail space of IDUS is drawn from the idea of blurring boundaries between a space and its experience—falling in line with Tadao Ando’s words.
Project Name: Furniture Store
Studio Name: I’m D’sign
Location: IDUS FURNITURE, New Delhi, India
Total area: 10,000 sq. ft.
Completion: April 2023
Design Leads: Deepak Kalra (Co-founder I’m D’sign) , Aarushi Kalra (Creative director I’mX) , Mariana Cunha Guimarães (Spatial Designer and Art Director)
Design Team: Priti Negi, Yuvika Agarwal
Furniture and Fixtures: IDUS
Photography credit: Ankush Maria
“the walls and the floor come together as a monolith and hence disappear—and what you’re left with is just the space to experience.”
The design intent questions the nature of space, volume and perception, to become an element of exploration. Light, along with the elements of Sciography play with the perceptual language here, guiding the visitor across the space while defining the larger continuum of the space—we are welcome to interact with light, take a walk in its direction and find our way forward.
The space speaks of its coherence with a sprawling, unifying ceiling while the walls float about its volume to create unique visual frames. These architectural interventions alter the physical, sensorial and temporal experience, spiking the explorative urge in a person, to get a closer look at the bespoke collections from the brand. An open exploration of furniture is thus showcased in a unique backdrop, having the floating walls define the micro-level experience.
The movement feels natural and the spatial flow is seamless. Organic, curvy walls, make way for a comfortable and intimate exploration, whilst forming nooks and corners, perfectly framing the sculptural furniture on display. These walls wrap around different sections in a way that no visitor, is at no point, is cut off from its surroundings.
All of the design delves into the experiential aspects of design, focusing on the visitor—their perception, connectivity and interactivity—to bring a sense of home within the retail experience. It challenges the common notion of the room, while taking an alternative approach to make a space feel intimate without being bound by enclosures. The expanse is made to feel large whilst housing smaller spatial compositions, that are adapted to an aesthetic of their own, without losing its ties on the overall.
Rather seen as a spatial oxymoron, IDUS is complete in its individual spatial compositions, while unified on the whole, making it open up a perfect medium for furniture display.
