MVRDV's transparent brick store in amsterdam re-opens for Hermès

in 2016, MVRDV completed a store in amsterdam that featured a façade made entirely out of glass. now, the scheme — named ‘crystal houses’ — has re-opened to accommodate the wares of luxury fashion house Hermès. located on the high-end shopping street PC hooftstraat, the store’s jewel-like façade was proposed as a way for amsterdam to be home to distinctive, upmarket flagship brands without compromising the city’s historical character.

all images © daria scagliola & stijn brakkee

designed for retail real-estate company warenar, ‘crystal houses’ was envisioned as a re-creation of the traditional buildings that make up the existing urban fabric. however, the typical brick façade has been replaced by a glass replica, which dissolves into the terracotta bricks on the upper level. to create this effect MVRDV undertook a period of intense research in collaboration of TU delft, engineers ABT, and contractor wessels zeist.

the project was originally conceived as a temporary venue for chanel. however, due to its spatial requirements, the impact of the façade’s transparency was diminished by a blind wall on the first floor. for the new Hermès store, interior designers RDAI, with coordingating architect bureau de binnenstad, removed this wall and opened the floor to the exterior, allowing visitors to see the full effect for the first time. see designboom’s previous coverage of the project here.

project info:

design: MVRDV
in collaboration with: TU delft, ABT, wessels zeist
materials provided by: poesia, delo industrial adhesives
location: amsterdam, the netherlands
status: complete
photography: daria scagliola & stijn brakkee