Our design decisions for the Quiksilver flagship store were strongly influenced by the surrounding the Venice surf and skate community. We wanted to develop intriguing and inviting outdoor environments that were interactive and flexible making the landscape features adaptable to a variety of events including outdoor screenings, special events, and informal gatherings.
The entry experience is marked by conical steel vessels evoking vortices, eddies, and other natural forms of movement. Emerging from these three forms grow sculptural tree aloes and senecio succulents. The multi-functional rear courtyard is designed for customization and adaptability to both daily function and larger scale special events. Movable shipping containers of unique plant species and picnic tables are ‘parked’ along its length sharing valuable multi-purpose space with cars, people, and other user groups. The store is encircled by punctuations of green and shade respites provided by native California Sycamore trees and an understory of meadow grasses and Cape Rush plantings.
For the interior garden, we collaborated with Verdego to create an abstraction of the exterior landscape with a series of floor to ceiling steel frames providing the armature for hundreds of Tillandsia or Airplants.
