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  • Devernois in GUM Moscow | RUS

    Directly opposite the Mausoleum, on the eastern side of the square, lies the building which houses Russia’s most famous shopping mall, the State Department Store GUM. Since the fall of communism, several other shopping centers and hypermarkets have sprung up to rival it in prestige, but GUM retains its status as a consumer Mecca for visitors to Moscow. In the Soviet Union, the top floor was home to Section 100, a secret clothing store only open to the highest echelons of the party. Nowadays the rows of exclusive boutiques are accessible to anyone with a platinum card. That being said, the building itself is glorious, and there are still a few more interesting relics of a bygone era on the higher floors that make it well worth exploring.

    Our proposal is based on a very simple idea. GUM with its elegant architecture inspired us and we tried with this intervention to highlight the spatial quality of the given space.

    Its high ceiling, the volts and the two light orientation already create a frame of opportunities.

    The materialization follows the last flagships of Devernois, such us Barcelona or Paris. Very neutral colours (black and white) combined with massive wood and golden elements (curtains or tiles) form a very elegant combination, a quality that defines DEVERNOIS.

    The amount of storage space, fitting rooms and hanging linear meters has increased compared to the current situation.

    SUMMARY

    Location: GUM Shopping Centre, Moscow, Russia

    Client: Devernois

    Area: 220 m²

    Architect: laura alvarez architecture

    Year: 2013

    Status: Built