Location: Sesto Fiorentino, Florence, Italy
Year: 2008
Client: Devon&Devon
Surface: 870 sqm

Located in the industrial area North of Florence littered with undistinguished warehouses, the project addresses the client’s request, which was to give the building a strong identity and make it outstanding among its surroundings.

The guidelines for the project are led by the research of its surroundings and creating a dialogue with the surrounding landscape. Obtained through the understated elegance of the façade that reflects and amplifies the row of trees that runs along the plot and was the main inspiring source for the project.

Made of 270 laser-cut metal frames painted white – each cut differs in dimensions and distance – the skin of the building appears like a pixelized picture of the trees that are in front of it. This kind of metalwork allows the façade to change its aspect according to the changes in daylight as well as at night when inner light reflects out. The skin becomes a sort of theatrical spectacle that mediates the relationship between outside and inside.

The façade is interrupted by a long window display that shows off the products inside. designed as an art gallery where the products are displayed as unique installations, in order to best express their features and singularities.