Project Overview

The project is located in Foshan, China. As a part of ceramic tile brand Overland's headquarters, it integrates the functions of reception, exhibition and experience, and aims to upgrade the brand’s image.
Based on the cultural core of the ceramic tile brand with a history of 25 years, the project adopts the design logic that meets the demands of contemporary and future exploration, and shows respect to the brand’s culture and core. The design team dug into the pure brand culture that respects nature and values plain aesthetics. Through architectural space and light, the designers expressed their understanding of the ceramic tile products with a confident attitude.

Project Commissioner

Guangdong Overland Ceramics Co., Ltd.

Project Creator

AD Architecture

Team

Xie Peihe

Project Brief

Free layout
By releasing the column networks of the space, the project creates a free, relaxing spatial atmosphere and well-organized circulations, allowing visitors to experience all products and participate in every spatial node by following set circulations.
Spatial narratives
The reception lobby breaks the original high and closed space, lowers the height of the ceiling, and creates interesting forms and a sense of strength, which visually extends the interior surfaces, enriches the spatial layers and effectively removes the oppressive feeling brought by closed space.
The design displays the brand image in an interactive manner, and creates connection between the 12 square columns and the brand. Brand display is realized based on multimedia that provides a tactile experience, stimulating visitors to interpret the brand by touching rock slabs.
Several transitional spaces are inserted to link spatial nodes, which produce a calm atmosphere before visitors enter the spatial climax, hence generating a strong sense of shock and surprise and intensifying visitors’ emotions and feelings.

Project Innovation/Need

The design team adjusted existing unreasonable circulation routes in the original space, so as to effectively unfold narratives about the ceramic tile brand and its products.
The product display space continues the overall design logic. To solve the problem of exhibition, ceramic tile products are divided into four categories, and are showcased in a pure manner on the horizontal and vertical surfaces within the space. With the interaction of light and geometric forms, and based on architectural aesthetics, the design expresses the confidence of the space and highlights the high-end products.
The column networks lead to the 20m-high hollow space, where visitors feel released from the oppressive feeling. Daylight penetrates the glass through geometric steel structures, enters the space and interacts with rock slabs. It varies with time, bringing visitors a joyful experience and taking them to the spatial climax. The geometric form and scale of the space highlight the large size of rock slabs. Complemented by light, the textures of natural rock slabs are strengthened. The tranquil light, powerful forms and natural tactile experience attract people, evoking various emotions and thinking.

Design Challenge

Conventional showrooms face two common problems. First, conventional spatial pattern restricts products to expressing themselves. Second, unreasonable display ways of products make the space disorderly, and do not well show the strengths of products, thereby lowering buyers’ shopping desires.
In light of this fact, the design breaks the homogeneous design of conventional showrooms and ways of product display, and enables products to resonate with the space, nature, people and time. It’s a bold exploration of showroom design in China’s ceramics sector.
There are 38 types of rock slabs, 54 display positions, and a variety of ceramic tile products. How to diversify the display ways posed a great challenge. The large quantity of ceramic tile products is likely to make the space disorderly. To avoid such problem, the design team showcased and matched products through rigorous calculation, thus unifying the overall space. The project combines rock slabs, metal, and glass, etc. Rock slabs are applied to cabinet, furniture and bar counter, with a view to highlighting products and establishing a dialogue between products and the space. The design team believed that it could be educational for the application of ceramic tile products.

Sustainability

The design stresses the role of natural daylight in the space and makes good use of it, which not only minimizes the use of artificial lighting and saves energy, but also enhances the spatial experience and adds a sense of closeness to the space.

Interior Design - International Corporate & Commercial

This award celebrates innovative and creative building interiors, with consideration given to space creation and planning, furnishings, finishes, aesthetic presentation and functionality. Consideration also given to space allocation, traffic flow, building services, lighting, fixtures, flooring, colours, furnishings and surface finishes.
More Details