Snøhetta x Holzweiler
It started with a scarf. When siblings Andreas
and Susanne Holzweiler tasked Snøhetta
with creating a pop-up for Paris A/W18
fashion week, they requested furniture that
would reflect the early years of the
Holzweiler brand, when it specialised in
woollen scarves. The architects pondered the
usual ways in which scarves are displayed –
either laid flat or on hangers – and why
these were limiting. ‘The scarf is meant to
be wrapped around the human body, and
nothing on the human body is flat,’ muses
Snøhetta founding partner Kjetil Trædal
Thorsen. The solution was an oak veneer
installation with serpentine curves on which
to drape the fabric, so its patterns could be
revealed in a more dynamic fashion. Eighteen
months on, the collaboration between
Snøhetta and Holzweiler now encompasses
the fashion house’s design studio, digital
retail channel and flagship store. The more
they work together, the more similarities
they discover. ‘Both companies have a strong
identity, and exist because of the strong
people who work there,’ observes Andreas,
pointing not only to their common
Norwegian origins but also the fact that their
workspaces are five minutes apart from each
other, and share a view of the Oslo Fjord. So
it made sense that Holzweiler’s design studio
and showroom would be the next project.
A scarf once again served as inspiration – this
time it was a checkered pattern that informed
the grid structure on the ceiling, along which
beige curtains can be drawn to create rooms
of varying sizes. The oak veneer installation
is now here, while a new series of pale pink
marble tables have been commissioned, with
irregular forms that reference the fluidity
of the human body. ‘The geometries of these
things are not stable,’ says Thorsen. ‘You
see a curve, then a straight line, then another
curve.’ An overhaul of Holzweiler’s retail
presence followed. The flagship store, which
takes up two storefronts along Oslo’s
prestigious Prinsens Gate, was conceived
with a muted, calming colour palette. The
entrance, lined with crumpled tracing paper,
leads the customer on a meditative path into
the store, where a wall lined with ragged
mustard-coloured ceramic tiles creates
dappled warm light throughout. The floor
is a smooth poured concrete, while occasional
oak furnishings and a brushed stainless
steel cabinet add to the textural diversity.
Materiality was a key concern, says Thorsen.
‘One of the advantages of physical retail
is that you can touch things.’ snohetta.comA textural cocoon formed from scarf patterns,
crumpled tracing paper and ragged ceramic tilesPHOTOGRAPHY: IVAR KVAAL WRITER: TF CHANArchitecture