MODERN VANCOUVER - GASTOWN PART I

Photography by Jonathan Cruz Photography

Geothermal building with a green roof - environmental details in addition to re-using, rebuilding and recreating an amazing interior space, Inform Interiors is a destination retail space and experience that every modern design enthusiast must see when visiting Vancouver.

Gastown is a cool and hip neighborhood filled with great little boutiques, restaurants and shops. None of the expected main stream big box stores ... rather a collection of unique retailers and eateries that set the tone of bringing upscale design to a the less obvious street scape. This little pocket of historic Vancouver offers a cutting edge to building character for the city. The cobblestone roads now meet a new wave of modern transformations which encompass the best of loft living and the design studios of creative minds behind recent face-lift exterior facades. Inform Interiors re-opened their showroom and will re-launch in spring'08 a new flagship B&B Italia and Boffi showroom in their previous location. (stay tuned - the Inform family is cleverly building local pedestrians and design lovers like me into modern addicts anxiously waiting for the big opening)





Images provided by Obakki
Architecture & Interiors by Mcfarlane Green + Biggar4
Historic Gastown is now the home to an A-list of must sees from a cool hip shop for modern mom and pops, visit Modern Kid which offers kid-friendly "easy on the eye" design for the modern novelist while fashion fronts like Obakki (tops as my favorite fashion retail interior for Vancouver) or Hunt & Gather bring a unique collection of one of a kind pieces made right in the store by costume designer atelier.




Images of Obakki above are through my eyes. Some of my favorite details include exposed concrete walls meeting seamlessly with polished concrete floors. The extension of corian meeting reclaimed fir to reverse beveled drywall details lit from behind to give a diffused wash of light to highlight the exposed brick walls. Love, love the architectural detailing. The interior reflects the quality and craftsmanship of the Obakki label right down to each detail.

MODERN MINIMAL - ISSUE #1

I FIND INSPIRATION FROM AMAZING BOOKS SUCH AS THOSE BY BELGIUM PUBLISHERS BETA-PLUS

http://www.betaplus.com/

MODERN ISN'T THE COLD INTERIORS THAT MANY INTERPRET AS BEING UNLIVABLE, LET GO OF THE CLUTTER AND OPEN YOUR MIND TO A WORLD OF AMAZING DETAILING ... THIS IS WHERE YOU REALLY COME TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT OF NOT JUST GOOD DESIGN BUT AMAZING DESIGN ... HOW OUR ENVIRONMENTS MOLD OUR LIVES IN SUBTLE WAYS THAT MAY NOT BE CLEAR TO US ... THERE'S A REASON YOU WALK INTO A SPACE AND FEEL REFRESHED OR EXCITED OR MAYBE EVEN A LITTLE CURIOUS TO SEE WHAT LIES AHEAD ... TAKE TIME TO BREATH IN YOUR INTERIORS AND YOU WILL FEEL WHAT REAL DESIGN IS ALL ABOUT. SOME DESIGN MAY JUST BE OVER THE TOP YET LEARNING TO APPRECIATE THE POWERFUL MINDS THAT ARE BEHIND WHAT MADE THESE INTERIORS MAKE US STOP TO SAY "WOW" - THAT ALONE MAKES ME PASSIONATE ABOUT THE WORLD AROUND US AND THE PEOPLE WHO COMMIT THEMSELVES TO PARTICIPATING IN SHAPING A BEAUTIFUL INTERIOR.

INSPIRED BY THE GREAT WORKS OF MODERN MINIMAL ARCHITECTS ...

JOHN PAWSON - LONDON BASED ARCHITECT
www.johnpawson.com

JOHN PAWSON RECENTLY UPDATED HIS WEBSITE AND EXPANDED HIS PORTFOLIO ON LINE. THIS IS A WEBSITE I OFTEN REFER TO FOR INSPIRATION AS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF MINIMAL ARCHITECTURAL DETAILING.


PRIVATE HOME IN LONDON - A SEAMLESS EXTENSION OF THE INTERIOR KITCHEN TO THE EXTERIOR BAR


PRIVATE RESIDENCE IN TOKYO - CANTILEVERED CONCRETE BENCH THAT CONTINUES THROUGH TO THE EXTERIOR

MILLIGRAM STUDIO - A TOKYO BASED ARCHITECTURAL FIRM / OWNER: TOMOYOKI UTSUMI
http://www.milligram.ne.jp/


A SIMPLE WHITE BOX THAT FLOATS ON TOP OF DIFFUSED GLASS


PRIVATE RESIDENCE - HOUSE IN SENZOKU