Kashiyama Daikanyama
For its flagship in the hip Daikanyama district if Tokyo, clothing brand Onward commissioned renowned Japanese studio nendo to devise an architectural experience to match the brand’s stature. The designer’s response is a tiered, four-storey structure composed as a series of alternating set-backs to produce an edgy harmony.
A basement café connects to the ground level where a gallery and lounge area act as event spaces; the second and third floors are dedicated to fashion and design, while the fourth and fifth levels host, respectively, a restaurant and a small bar.
The interior of the building, specifically designed to emphasise the structure’s external characteristics, presents a stylish mix of materials and subtle transitions of light colours and textures, underscoring the continuous rhythm of indoor and outdoor spaces – the essential leitmotif of the project.
The multilayered harmony of the architecture is reflected in the choice of furniture. Most notably, nendo’s Tape series of sofas, armchairs and wing-back bergères are scattered throughout, variously finished in fabric or leather in calming shades of sage and grey. A product of Minotti’s renowned upholstery atelier, the tape detailing that binds feet to the frames can also be read as an eloquent homage to Onward’s sartorial prestige.
