Asti Architetti has designed the new building of the flagship store of the luxury brand Ralph Lauren in Via della Spiga in Milan, a project that integrates with the urban architectural fabric in a sober and elegant way. The location in the fashion district was a strategic choice by the notorious brand both for the commercial vocation of the store and for the Milan style characteristics of the property from which to start. The building rises vertically on five floors with a large internal garden and on the side of Via della Spiga the prospect is characterized by the classic succession of full and empty spaces given by windows and shop windows treated according to the most rigorous reproduction of the types of the time.
Inside, romantic little terraces are added, enriched by decorations and wrought iron railings. Asti Architetti’s intervention follows the traces of history: it re-proposes an attack on the ground with openings in lowered arches, according to the typology widely present in the old center of Milan. In order to achieve this, the floors on the lower floors were reduced in size in order to create spaces of such a height as to guarantee pleasantness to the many collective functions present on the ground floor. The introduction of the “half windows at mezzanine level” also give momentum to the attack on the ground.
In the inner courtyard a suggestive garden has been created with different possibilities of collective use, a small green spot that gives harmony and color to the store. On the various levels are distributed the iconic collections of Ralph Lauren that allow visitors an experience in years of history of the brand presented as in a house museum. On the ground floor, The Bar allows visitors to relax and take a break for a light lunch or a snack, and then go up to the top two floors to enjoy a spectacular view of the city. The design by Paolo Asti, author of more than 70 projects in the historic center of Milan, gives Via della Spiga a new classy building that blends organically with the surrounding architectural context.
CREDITS
Project: Ralph Lauren flagship store building
Architect: Asti Architetti
Year: 2021
Photo: Gusmeroli
