Over the past decade, there has been an increasing demand for small intimate places where Millennials hang-out, whether after work, after class, or just on the weekends, Wine Bars have become a popular choice to meet this demand.
The Wine Bar I am proposing, like the wine it houses, will be made out of two standard 40 x 8 x 8.5 shipping containers. Opening one of the walls of a shipping container, as if it were a door, the container transforms into an architecturally rich atmosphere of natural light and shadows, while still maintaining its intimacy.
With the addition of a subterranean second container parallel to the hinged wall, the skylight from above is mimicked with a glass floor exposing the wine cellar underneath. This not only allows for a more diverse selection of wine, but a heightened, more entertaining experience.
Encompassing a variety of social interaction from a single person having a quick drink, to a group of six people meeting for a birthday, the Wine Bar program includes:
Bar+Seating: 250 sqft
(at 18-20 sqft per person) = 13 people
Sit-Down Tables: 125 sqft
(at 12-16 sqft per person) = 10 people
Service/Circulation: 95 sqft
Storage Cellar: 320 sqft (a 40 x 8 x 8.5 container)
Total: 790 sqft serving 23 people (max 25)
Much like the diversity of the wine selection, by using the shipping container as a starting point and only manipulating it in a precise minimalist fashion, the contextual landscape that the Wine Bar is situated on is not confined or specific. You could find it in the middle of central park, at a museum’s gallery opening, even in the heart of Paris. In essence the Wine Bar is as unique, as responsive, and as shippable as a bottle of wine.
In the end Imported is a small, intimate, wine bar that provides the GenY crowd with a variety of wines in a unique architectural setting.