APPLE ORCHARD ROAD IN SINGAPORE
We are bringing your more news from the world of stonemasonry. The property that caught our eye this time was commissioned in the middle of last year. It’s called Apple Orchard Road and it is a new Apple store in Singapore.
Apple Orchard Road isn’t just the company’s branch in this East Asian city-state. The intention is for the store to become a hub of creativity where photographers, musicians and IT professionals can develop and update apps while also serving as a source of inspiration and education for visiting customers and professionals.
The location of the store was chosen deliberately. Orchard Road is famous for its nutmeg tree and fruit tree orchards. Singapore is regarded as one of the greenest cities in the world and Orchard Road, which is lined with trees, lives up to this reputation.
The store was designed in collaboration with architectural firm Foster + Partners and the Apple project team. It was agreed from the beginning that the construction should blur the boundaries between the indoor and outdoor and the building should remain inconspicuous in the surrounding greenery. For this reason, the 36.5 metres wide front wall of the store is made of glass, and the white canopy, which protects the interior against Singapore’s tropical climate, lacks supporting columns, although it does protrude noticeably.
The unique atmosphere of the building is completed by a wide access walkway with several preserved old trees forming a shaded area. The same trees also grow on the mezzanine floor inside the building, adding to the impression of unrestricted space for gathering in a natural environment.
The interior boasts two large walls decorated with stone and extraordinary curved staircases. Interestingly, the staircases are made of solid stone blocks measuring 1.6 × 1.2 × 0.2 m. These Castagna marble elements were handmade by Italian craftsmen.
We hope that architects designing new buildings will make more use of our
Source: Kurier kamieniarski
Author: Kurier Kamieniarski | Published: 07 May 2018
