The wallpaper bookstore is located in Qinhuangdao Aranya Art Center. As an architecture bookstore, its atmosphere should neither be too fashionable nor too exquisite. The objects in the space are supposed to be simple, direct, and with a sense of “studio.” We designed all the pendants and bookshelves as they help shape the character of the bookstore, and chose a classic form — also an anonymous form — with a long history for drawing tables and stools. We envisioned the space filled with albums, drawings, and models that could withstand some messiness.
The high space has a certain amount of natural light, and we keep its cafe function in use. The upper part of the cafe, with large white walls suitable for exhibiting images and hanging models and posters, becomes a space with frequently-changing looks. We reduced the number of openings in its lower part, and surrounded it with bookshelves, thus achieving a more solid volume. In a dim light against the black background, each bookshelf projects its lampshade and illuminates itself alone. The central drawing table, with the softest light from above, becomes the center of this small stage, on which books are the protagonists.
We designed the lamps and exhibition tables especially for an architectural book fair, hoping they acquire corresponding characteristics – simply structured, conveniently produced, and with architectural stability and tranquility.
A long row of tables would form a unified entity only if their legs are at the quartile position of the whole length. However, this is not a normal position for legs to suppose the table, so we reconsidered the design logic and made the legs themselves self-supporting structures. As a result, the desktops become flat plates sitting on top. Due to the oversize of the tables, we also considered their disassembling and flat packaging for easier transportation. The final form of the exhibition table responds to all these needs.
The pendant lamp is folded out of a galvanized steel plate, which brings back our childhood memory of paper-folding. We always find small corners where glue is applied.
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