Located in the heart of the department store district, Citadium Caumartin embodies the new era with a statement concept, designed by ciguë, that gets down to basics by focusing on movement and light.
Cities, ciguë knows, are kinetic spaces, and for Citadium they have opted for a “post-car-park” aesthetic with lines and numbers painted on the floor and vertical Ginza-like signs corresponding to each brand’s retail area. Ciguë continues to disrupt the codes of retail, a field generally corseted by commercial codes – which leave architects little room for maneuver.
The studio puts experimentation back at the heart of their projects. The concrete floors and walls and the steel hanging racks contrast with ciguë’s signature recycled plastic, bringing ultra-contemporary flashes into this temple of eternal/ youth.
The idea of movement comes from the brands that come and go, popping up for a while in spaces that are uncluttered yet spectacular, and from the visitors who explore the four levels of the flagship store, walking around the central atrium with its huge spherical video screen. The theme of movement continues in an exciting events programme featuring DJs performing in a glass box at the heart of Planet Citadium.
Natural light is the other key feature of the concept store. It floods through windows made visible by clearing layers of accumulated fittings, illuminating a shell-like space that has been stripped bare, revealing marks left behind at different stages of its history.
Black painted ceilings disappear behind a grid of strip lights. Furniture designed by ciguë is reconfigurable and ultra-mobile; hanging racks, tables and display units are functional with an industrial feel. The concrete floors and walls and the steel hanging racks contrast with ciguë’s signature recycled plastic, bringing ultra-contemporary flashes into this temple of eternal youth.
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