Situated at the heart of the historic city of Phitsanulok, the project will be the latest in an exclusive line of Swensen’s Regional Flagship Stores. The store will draw upon the region’s cultural and historical essence and distil it to form a unique blend of local heritage.
The City’s unique habitation was floating houses concentrated along the two coloured rivers which earned it the name Song Kwae; or Two Rivers. Its strategic location made it the natural trading post, and goods would flow up and down streams to meet at the floating city. The design does not recreate the appearance of the past devoid of any context, instead take the essence and reinterpret it for the present. The architecture, freed from simple aesthetics and traditional constraints, is allowed to explore this notion of a meeting point. The motifs are used at a larger scale through the reflection of a singular plain. Floating houses are inverted off a reflective ceiling forming a visual gimmick but also was crucial in grounding the idea in its context. The site is adjacent to the main road, which forms the current mode of transportation, with no water nearby.
The two rivers’ meeting are reflected in both the exterior with featured ponds as well as, at the interior scale. Inside, the ceilings are lined with dual coloured fabric arranged in swirling patterns which suggests movement of the water streams. This also has the practical function of acoustic mediation as the space is designed with the largest seating capacity of any Swensen’s shop to date. The plan is designed with multiple areas for guests to hang their legs, as one might along a river terrace. Throughout the store, motifs of river dwellings are repeated and inserted as seats
or hung objects such as paddles.
The project plays on the theme of connecting, by presenting itself as the meeting place where local stories continue. The venue is intended to capture the city’s heritage strength and reinterpret it to provide a welcoming place for visitors to meet, feast, and greet; at the pride of Phitsanulok.
Team:
Architects: Creative Crews
Photographers: Rugkit Charoenwat, Nonpawit Komkrichwarakool, Creative Crews
