From Pottery to Floor Bricks – How to Incorporate Tradition into Store Design

Via worldarchitecturenews.com
Designer: Yusuke Seki
All photos: Takumi Ota via worldarchitecturenews.com

To an eco-minded spirit that does not bear to witness the wasting of any resources, the newly renovated Maruhiro flagship store must bring a very particular joy. In an unexpected twist of imagination, discarded pottery pieces take on a new life as a platform floor and turn the space into a feast for the beauty lover.

As the leading producer of Hasami ceramics, Maruhiro is continuing the area’s 400-year old tradition of ceramic tableware production. Such a history heavy with efficiency is bound to produce a large number of side products – among them, the imperfect ceramic pieces that fill the Monohara, the “trash pit” where broken pottery is abandoned.

Inspired by the very concept of Monohara, Yusuke Seki designed an interior that is not only unique and quirky, but also a tribute to the long-standing tradition behind Maruhiro ceramics. 25,000 pieces of tableware that were found defective after the bisque-firing process were gathered from different pottery factories in the Hasami area and transformed into bricks. Filled with poured cement, the “Shinikiji” pieces were placed in layers and became a raised central platform, perfectly suggesting the history that supports the final Maruhiro products.

As the central element of design and as a visually arresting structural and decorative choice, the pottery platform made other major improvements to the space unnecessary. The store leans towards minimalism, with white walls echoing the monochromatic design of the platform floor.

Brick stairs and rectangular wooden display shelves retain the simplicity of the space, so that the pottery floor remains the focal point. To the perceptive customer, the unfinished stairs appear as a fitting symbol of the historical ascent from yesterday’s pottery to today’s beautiful ceramic pieces.

Please take a look at our Before and After images of selected projects from 2015 HERE.

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