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LOCATION ▸ SHANGHAI

CLIENT ▸ UOOYAA

YEAR ▸ 2022

STATUS ▸ COMPLETED

PROGRAMME ▸ UOOYAA CONCEPT STORE

COLLABORATORS ▸ -

PHOTOGRAPHER ▸ -

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PROJECT SYNOPSIS ▾

THE PROJECT IS THE FIRST PHYSICAL CONCEPT STORE OF THE ORIGINAL DESIGN BRAND UOOYAA IN SHANGHAI, LOCATED IN THE VIBRANT MIDDLE WULUMUQI ROAD.

WE FOCUS ON THE PROJECTING THE PRESENT RATHER THAN THE PAST AND THE FUTURE. LOCATED IN A DOWNTOWN AREA, THE STORE IS SUPPOSED TO ILLUSTRATE THE BRAND’S SPIRITUAL ORIGINS, THE INSPIRATIONS THAT SHAPED THE DESIGN, AND WHAT EVERYDAY LIFE CAN BRING TO FASHION. BEYOND SPATIAL DESIGN, THE PROJECT AIMS TO ADDRESS BROADER ISSUES OF CULTURE AND BRANDING. THE IDEA IS TO SEE THE PROJECT AS A WHOLE, INTELLIGENTLY DEVELOPING THE SPACE AND PLAN AROUND A CORE CONCEPT. THE PROJECT IS DIVIDED INTO TWO PARTS: THE ACTUAL SPACE, AND THE VIRTUAL CONCEPT, THE SEPARATION ALLOWING US TO FREE ARCHITECTURAL THINKING FROM ARCHITECTURAL PRACTICE. THE GOAL WAS TO PRECISELY SHAPE THE NEW UOOYAA BRAND IMAGE....

CONCEPT

DIVING INTO THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS AN OPPORTUNITY. TO EMBRACE THE UNCERTAINTY OF THE STREET AND DISCOVER A NEW SELF IN A DYNAMIC CONVERSATION. THE GROWTH OF A BRAND DEPENDS ON THE OPENNESS OF ITS CONCEPT AND THE WISDOM OF ITS OBSERVATIONS. THUS, A VIBRANT NEIGHBORHOOD CAN BE PRECIOUS. WE WATCHED MIDDLE URUMQI ROAD EVOLVE FROM A PURELY URBAN NEIGHBORHOOD TO ONE THAT HAS SLOWLY ABSORBED FASHION AND LIFESTYLE IN RECENT YEARS. A NEIGHBORHOOD CAN NEVER BE STATIC, METABOLISM IS THE NATURAL NATURE OF A NEIGHBORHOOD. AN EVOLVING NEIGHBORHOOD IS THE BEST PHYSICAL MEDIUM FOR BRANDS TO ENGAGE WITH THE PUBLIC.

THE METABOLIC PERSPECTIVE LIBERATES THE STATIC SPACE INTO AN ORGANICALLY CHANGING PROCESS LIKE A LIVING BEING, ESSENTIALLY RESHAPING THE DICHOTOMY BETWEEN THE COMMERCIAL SPACE AND THE COMMUNITY. WITH SPATIAL DESIGN AND COMMUNITY LIFE, METABOLISM IS NO LONGER A PASSIVE NATURAL PHENOMENON. THE INTERVENTION OF THE PUBLIC ALLOWS RETAIL SPACE TO UNDERGO LOGICAL CHANGES ON ITS OWN INITIATIVE.

SPACE - DEBUT

WE WANTED TO INVITE THE NEIGHBORHOOD TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ENTIRE PROCESS OF THE PROJECT, AND WE ENVISIONED THE DEBUT OF THE STORE DURING CONSTRUCTION. WALKING THROUGH THE TEMPORARY FENCES AND ALONG THE “WUZHONG UOOYAA ROAD” THAT SEAMLESSLY CONNECTS TO MIDDLE WULUMUQI ROAD, WITH HELMETS AND PROJECT INFORMATION HANGING ON THE FENCES, YOU WILL FIND A NEW NEIGHBORHOOD UNDER CONSTRUCTION: WUZHONG UOOYAA. IN A REAL NEIGHBORHOOD, THE NEW CONSTRUCTION SITE IS OFTEN OPEN TO ALL PASSERSBY, AND PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS ENCOUNTER THE BUSY WORKERS.

YOU CAN SEE THE PRELIMINARY PLAN OF LIFE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD: CROSSING THE PATH, PASSING A TYPICAL STREET-SIDE GROCERY STORE WITH A WIDE RANGE OF GOODS DISPLAYED ON SHELVES AND STANDS; MOVING FORWARD INTO A SQUARE, THE PUBLIC SPACE OF THE ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOOD. THE WHITE LINES SPRAY-PAINTED ON THE GROUND DEFINE SEVERAL STAGGERED “CONSTRUCTION SITES,” SOME OF WHICH HAVE ALREADY BEEN BUILT TO HOUSE CASHIER AND STORAGE FUNCTIONS, WHILE THE REAL-TIME DYNAMICS OF THE WORKERS’ HANDLING OF TOOLS ARE PROJECTED ON THE WALLS THROUGH LIGHT BOXES, SATISFYING PEOPLE’S CURIOSITY ABOUT THE CONSTRUCTION SITE IN A CONTROLLED WAY. PEOPLE’S CURIOSITY ABOUT THE SITE IS SATISFIED IN A CONTROLLED WAY. THERE ARE AREAS ONLY DEFINED BY WHITE LINES, WAITING TO BE BUILT IN THE FUTURE.

IN A REAL NEIGHBORHOOD, CONSTRUCTION SITES AND BUILDINGS ARE OFTEN THE MAIN CHARACTERS ON THE SURFACE. HOWEVER, THE EDGES OUTSIDE THE SITES ARE THE REAL SOURCE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD’S VITALITY. WE ACTIVELY USE THE EDGES OF THE WUZHONG UOOYAA NEIGHBORHOOD TO CREATE MORE SCENES OF NEIGHBORHOOD LIFE, WHILE LETTING THE TEMPORARY STATE OF CONSTRUCTION PERMEATE THEM: STEEL CABLES ARE SIMPLY PULLED AND STRETCHED TO BECOME CLOTHES HANGERS. READY-MADE CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS SUCH AS METAL GRATES AND LAMPS ARE STACKED AND PLACED TO FORM A “FLOWER SHOP” AT THE CORNER OF THE STREET. WOODEN FRUIT BOXES ARE SCATTERED AT THE CORNERS TO EVOKE THE IDEA OF A “FRUIT STORE”. THE WOODEN FRUIT CRATES SCATTERED IN THE CORNERS EVOKE MEMORIES OF “FRUIT STANDS” AND BECOME PROPS FOR DISPLAYING ACCESSORIES. A STREET VENDING MACHINE NO LONGER SELLS CANNED BEVERAGES, BUT THE BRAND’S CANNED T-SHIRTS.

SEEING THE BUSY WORKERS, THE COMMUNITY HAS HIGH HOPES FOR THE FUTURE OF THE WUZHONG UOOYAA NEIGHBORHOOD.

SPACE METABOLISM – PHASE I

WHEN THE FENCES WERE REMOVED, THE WUZHONG UOOYAA NEIGHBORHOOD WAS PRESENTED TO THE PEOPLE AGAIN. WITH THE DEMOLITION OF THE TEMPORARY WAREHOUSE, THE NARROW PATH AT THE ENTRANCE WAS TRANSFORMED INTO A WIDER “STREET PARK”. THERE ARE NO FRONT DOORS, AND THE BENCH ON EITHER SIDE INVITES NEIGHBORS TO SIT DOWN AND HAVE A LITTLE CHAT. AFTER PASSING THE FAMILIAR GROCERY STORE, PEOPLE ARE GREETED BY A BRAND-NEW SQUARE. ALL TEMPORARY CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND INSTALLATIONS HAVE BEEN REMOVED, AND THE BRIGHT AND CLEAN STREETS INDICATE THAT THE SPACE HAS LEFT ITS INFANCY AND IS NOW UNDERGOING ITS FIRST METABOLISM.

THE METABOLISM OF THE SPACE IS NOT A COMPLETE OVERLAY, THERE ARE ALWAYS TRACES OF GROWTH. THE MOTTLED CONCRETE WALLS CONTRAST WITH THE FRESHLY PAINTED FLAT WALLS, TELLING THE STORY OF THE PAST. THE NOSTALGIC SMALL WHITE TILES, PRINTED WITH BLUE STRAWBERRY PATTERNS, ALLUDE TO A MORE ABSTRACT “FRUIT STORE” AT THE CORNER, INTEGRATING THE COMMUNITY’S LIFE.

THE PAVING, WHICH VARIES IN SIZE AND ORIENTATION, IS NOW COMPLETE. THE PAVING IS MADE OF LIGHT GRAY BRICKS MADE FROM RECYCLED MATERIALS, WITH PLASTIC PARTICLES VAGUELY VISIBLE, TAKEN FROM THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND EVENTUALLY RETURNED TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD. THE PAVEMENT’S DIFFERENT FEATURES DIVIDE THE GROUND INTO SMALL AND LARGE AREAS, LEAVING MARKERS OF THE WUZHONG UOOYAA NEIGHBORHOOD’S BLUEPRINT AND DEMONSTRATING WHAT IS TO COME.

SPACE METABOLISM – PHASE II,III & MORE

WE HAVE FINISHED THE PRELIMINARY PLANNING, YET THE WUZHONG UOOYAA NEIGHBORHOOD IS ONLY AT THE BEGINNING OF ITS LIFELONG JOURNEY. THE VARIOUS SIZES AND DIRECTIONS OF THE LIGHT GRAY BRICKS ON THE GROUND DEFINE A FRAMEWORK FOR MORE “HOUSES” TO BE BUILT IN RESPONSE TO REAL SPATIAL BEHAVIOR. THESE “HOUSES” WILL BE DEMOLISHED AND REBUILT IN RESPONSE TO DYNAMIC SPATIAL NEEDS. WE LOOK FORWARD TO EACH METABOLISM OF THE WUZHONG UOOYAA NEIGHBORHOOD, LINKING IT WITH THE BRAND’S DEVELOPMENT, AND ULTIMATELY SHAPING THE BRAND’S IMAGE PRECISELY.

GRAPHIC DESIGN

A STRONG COMMUNITY REQUIRES AN EASILY IDENTIFIABLE, YET DISTINCTIVE LOGO THAT IS PROMINENTLY DISPLAYED THROUGHOUT THE NEIGHBORHOOD. GIVEN THE CONNECTION BETWEEN UOOYAA (WU-YA) AND MIDDLE WULUMUQI ROAD (WUZHONG ROAD), THE CHARACTER “WU”, SHARED BY BOTH, WAS UTILIZED AS A RADICAL. “ZHONG” AND “YA” WERE THEN MERGED TO CREATE A NEW RADICAL, FORMING A FICTIONAL CHARACTER THAT SERVES AS THE EMBLEM FOR THE NEW NEIGHBORHOOD. THIS NEW CHARACTER REVEALS THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE WUZHONG UOOYAA NEIGHBORHOOD AND MIDDLE WULUMUQI ROAD. THE RELATIONSHIP IS AT ONCE NEW AND FAMILIAR. YOU ARE IN ME, AND I AM IN YOU. IT IS A FRESH EXPERIENCE THAT INHERENTLY CARRIES A SENSE OF FAMILIARITY.

项目为原创设计品牌UOOYAA乌丫在上海的首家线下概念店铺，坐落于富有市井气息的乌鲁木齐中路。

比起历史和未来，我们更关注当下的投射。项目地处闹市生活街区，它应该阐述品牌的精神起源、令作品成形的灵感来源、生活给时尚带来的启示等等。该项目旨在将空间设计扩展到文化和品牌等更广泛的问题上。这个构想是将这个项目视为一个整体，智慧地围绕一个核心概念发展空间、平面。项目分为两个部分：实际的空间，以及虚拟的概念，分离使我们能够将建筑思维从建筑实践中解放出来。最终的目标是精准地塑造全新的 UOOYAA 品牌形象。

概念

深入街区，是一次机会。迎接街道的不确定性，在流动的对话中发现新的自我。品牌的成长仰仗理念的开放，以及观察的智慧，一个鲜活而真实的街区因此显得珍贵。我们观察乌鲁木齐中路从多年前纯粹的市井气息，到近些年慢慢糅合了时尚和生活方式。静止不是街区的状态，新陈代谢才是街区的天然本质，一个演化中的街区是品牌与大众接触最好的物理媒介。

新陈代谢的视角将静止的空间解放为生物体般有机变化的过程，从本质上重塑了商业空间和外部社区的二元对立关系。在空间规划和社区生活的共同作用下，新陈代谢不再是被动的自然现象，公共属性的介入使得零售空间可以主动发生有逻辑的变化。

空间-初次亮相

我们希望邀请街区的邻里参与项目的全过程，预设首次亮相的店铺状态是施工进行时。穿过临时围挡，沿着一条与乌中路无缝衔接的“乌丫支路”，安全帽，项目信息等悬挂在围挡上，人们会发现一个正在施工的新街区：乌中乌丫。在真实的街区生活中，新的工地往往向所有路过的人打开，人们总会与忙碌的工人不期而遇。

你可以看到初步规划的街区生活：穿过小路，经过一个典型的街边便利店，货架和立柜上陈列着琳琅满目的商品；向前进入一片广场，是整个街区的公共空间。地面喷绘的白线定义了几块交错分布的“建设用地”，有的已经建起一些“房子”，容纳收银、仓储的功能，同时通过灯箱将工人搬运工具的实时动态投射在墙面上，以可控的方式满足人们对施工现场的好奇心。有的地块仅仅先被白线定义，亟待后期的建设。

在一个真正的街区中，建设用地和建筑往往是表面的主角，用地之外的边角才是街区活力的真正来源。我们积极利用乌中乌丫街区的边缘领域，制造更多的街区生活场景，同时让临时的施工状态渗透其中：钢索经过简单的牵拉成为展示衣物的挂衣杆；金属网架和灯管等现成施工材料堆叠放置，成为街角的“花店”；木质的水果箱散落在墙角，唤起对“水果摊”的记忆，也成为配饰的陈列道具；街头的自动售货机摇身一变，不贩卖听装饮料，取而代之的是品牌的罐装T恤。

在工人忙碌的身影中，街坊邻居对乌中乌丫街区的未来充满期待。

空间-新陈代谢 I

当围挡撤去，二次亮相的乌中乌丫街区呈现在人们面前。入口处狭窄的小路随着临时仓库的拆除变成了更宽大的“街心公园”，不设封闭的店门，两侧的长凳邀请过往的邻里坐下歇歇脚，聊会儿天。经过熟悉的便利店，迎接人们的是焕然一新的广场。所有与施工有关的临时材料和装置被撤去，明亮整洁的街道宣示着空间已经告别初生，现在是第一次新陈代谢。

空间的新陈代谢不是完全的覆盖，总会留下一些生长的痕迹：四周斑驳的混凝土墙面与崭新漆面的平整墙体形成对比，诉说着空间的过往；部分墙面铺贴充满怀旧气息的白色小瓷砖，印有蓝色的草莓图案，影射更为抽象的街角“水果摊”，融入社区的生活元素。

大小、方向各异的铺地此刻也完整呈现在人们面前。铺地采用回收材料制成的浅灰色砖块，依稀可见掺杂的塑胶颗粒，取自社区又回归社区。不同特征的铺地将地面切分为大小的领域，是我们对乌中乌丫街区的规划痕迹，也是对街区未来的暗示。

空间-新陈代谢 II, III 以及更多

我们完成了所有初步的规划，但乌中乌丫街区的旅程才刚刚开始。

地面浅灰色砖块的大小和方向变化提供了可依循的框架，更多的“房子”会随着真实的空间行为建起，也会根据空间的实时需要被拆除，再被建起……如此循环往复。我们期待着乌中乌丫街区的每一次新陈代谢，与品牌发展联动，最终精准地塑造UOOYAA的品牌形象。

平面设计

一个有凝聚力的街区，往往需要一个简单而独特的标识形成对身份的认同。新街区的平面设计将成为街区生活中反复出现的一部分。通过深入思考乌丫和乌中路的联系，取二者共有的“乌”字为部首，将“中”、“丫”糅合成新的偏旁，一个本不存在的新造字成为新街区的核心标识。这个既陌生又熟悉的会意字，暗示了乌中乌丫街区与乌中路的关系：你中有我，我中有你；是新的面孔，但并不疏离。

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PHOTOS ▾

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DRAWINGS & DIAGRAMS ▾