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Apple Store Miami
Nigel Young, Foster + Partners

Apple Store Miami

29 Aug 2019  •  Innovations  •  By Allie Shiell

With double storey glazed walls and strong indoor to outdoor connections, Foster + Partner’s latest Apple store in Miami features many of the hallmarks of the brand’s other stores worldwide. The twist here comes in the form of a waving roof that draws influence from the curving forms and white finishes of 1930’s Miami Art Deco Architecture.  

photo_credit © Nigel Young, Foster + Partners
© Nigel Young, Foster + Partners

Located at Miami’s Aventura Mall, the store’s undulating roof is made from seven, precast 20 foot wide (6m) white concrete arches. Beams measure 80 feet (24.3m) and the spans between pillars are spaced at 60 feet (18.2 m). Barrel vaulted, the structure is supported by thin columns clad in white concrete casings.  White fabric is used for ceiling acoustics. ‘We love the honesty and purity of the concrete,’ explains Stefan Behling, Head of studio Foster + Partners. ‘The language and materiality at Apple Aventura Aall are inspired by Miami’s white art deco traditions and climate, making it an expression of its place and culture. This is the first apple store to feature white precast concrete as the predominant structural system and it is also a continuation of the materiality we explored at Apple Park.’

photo_credit © Nigel Young, Foster + Partners
© Nigel Young, Foster + Partners

Spatially, the heart of the store is organized around built-in stadium style seating with a Forum Screen for video display. The steps climb to the second level where there are feature leather seating elements -  complete with charging stations of course. At the top of the steps there is a store area accessed from a higher level entrance. At the bottom of the stair, the double storey space contains the brand’s well-known wooden tables displaying Apple products.

photo_credit © Nigel Young, Foster + Partners
© Nigel Young, Foster + Partners

And like many of the other Apple stores Foster + Partner is known for, outdoor lifestyle merges with the indoor. In this instance, trees are carried from indoors to out.  ‘This store is very ‘Miami’ to me — its special trees, the light and the new roof,’ adds Jonathan Ive, the now former Apple Chief Design Officer. ‘It is also quintessentially Apple, marrying the outdoor lifestyle with a sense of freedom and creativity that is intrinsic to the way we work.’

photo_credit © Nigel Young, Foster + Partners
© Nigel Young, Foster + Partners
photo_credit © Nigel Young, Foster + Partners
© Nigel Young, Foster + Partners
photo_credit © Foster + Partners
© Foster + Partners