glimpses
Hello New York
E
yewear lovers are invited to 109 Crosby Street, SoHo, New York City, the location of the very first MYKITA Shop in the US. The shop concept of the Berlin-based eyewear specialists unites the company’s own design principles with optical precision made in Germany. The architecture of the MYKITA Shop is based on the progressive composition of different elements and contrasting materials. The unique concept is a marriage of three underlying features: mass-produced, readymade objects removed from their original context, combined with purpose-designed furniture and a stage-like lighting concept. The result is an art installation with a bold and simple construction that retains the original character of the art deco factory building. The primary design element of the shop interior is the all-white MYKITA Wall. It comprises perforated steel angle beads that are reinvented from their regular function as heavyduty shelving supports. The resulting structure is backlit and serves as a presentation area giving the frames ample space to present themselves. Individual shelf elements inserted into the wall provide each model with its own little stage. In addition, out-of-service flight attendant trolleys that have circled the globe a thousand times are given a new lease of life here as a storage facility. The integrated “Relaxed Vision Centre” is a special lab equipped with state-of-the-art precision instruments from Carl Zeiss research. Customers can consult the MYKITA in-house optometrist, who generates customized optical profiles and performs an exact adaptation of frame and lens to the wearer’s face. Quality, precision and products “made in Germany” are the common themes behind the partnership of MYKITA with the world renowned optical solutions specialist Zeiss. At night, when even NYC is alleged to sleep, the ceiling is lit up by a fluorescent-tube construct. The light installation is aligned with the old metal pipes from the original sprinkler system in a conscious reference to the building’s industrial heritage. This finishing touch unites the present with the architectural past.
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OPTICAL PRISM | SEPTEMBER 2013