Contract - September 2016 - 61

Key Design Highlights
The historic building's restored
art nouveau exterior and original
details within the central atrium
inspired the graceful, curving
forms of interior walls
and fixtures.
Layered translucent wall systems
provide glimpses through a
central spine that contains
changing rooms, a barbershop,
and a tattoo parlor.
Featuring custom fixtures
with a concretelike finish, open
display areas are accented with
blue, green, and orange.
Circular areas, which are defined
by partial-height walls and a shift
in floor finish, highlight specific
brands and host designer
pop-ups.
The interior color palette
was influenced by 1970s-era
fashion advertising.

display fixtures feature massive, curved bases
that appear to be solid concrete but are made with
Polytec's Imi-beton, an architectural finish that
is both lightweight and malleable. Colorful powdercoated metal rods that are bent to form clothing
racks extend from these bases.
Also finished with Imi-beton, curving partialheight walls demarcate special areas for hosting
designer pop-ups and highlighting brands. Inlaid
terrazzo flooring further defines these circular
spaces, contrasting the polished concrete
finish of the rest of the floor. The largest of these
installations, positioned within the building's most
prominent chamfered corner, has a discolike
glimmering ceiling of disc-shaped and cylindrical
elements with a polished stainless-steel-like finish.
Coming full circle
Having begun his career as a menswear designer
for Calvin Klein, de Cárdenas draws inspiration
from fashion when conceiving retail interiors.
For example, fashion advertisements from the 1970s
influenced the color palette for Au Pont Rouge's
fixtures, and their shapes can be attributed to
myriad cultural sources: "The forms, both hard and
soft, were an interesting contrast that we wanted

to play up. This was, in some way, a response
to the historic structure's gestural art nouveau
style, still evident in the exterior but also in details
throughout the interior, including the balustrades
in the atrium," says de Cárdenas. "But [they
also convey] impressions of Russia, which can
be culturally aggressive and hard. Yet, ballet
is their baseball."
De Cárdenas says he is moved by ballerina
Maya Plisetskaya's performance in the late
1950s film "The Dying Swan," a solo that follows
the last moments of the bird's life. Plisetskaya's
interpretation characterized the swan as stubbornly
resisting the effects of aging, but the opposite
could be said for the nearly 110-year-old building
that is known as Au Pont Rouge. Now restored to
its original purpose, the building's latest incarnation
is reverent but also feels fresh and playful. As Singh
says, "Visitors return just to enjoy the space and
its varied details, including the colors, the pacing,
and the intriguing layout that preserves historical
elements as well as views to other floors and the
Moika River beyond." c

contract

Contract - September 2016

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