Tokyo boulevard.The entrance to a department store in a bustling shopping district of Tokyo has been transformed by this playful yet practical array of street furniture. Harajuku is one of Tokyo's liveliest shopping areas. At weekends, the dense network of shops, restaurants, boutiques and market stalls is overrun by gaggles of young Tokyo-ites, shopping, meeting friends and generally hanging out. The main elm-lined throughfare of Omotosando is a popular place for strolling and cafe hopping - a rare enclave of European boulevard life amid the apparent chaos and dislocation of Tokyo. Nearby is the famous Yovogi Park, where competing zoku (tribes) from spikily festooned punks to brilliantined Elvis impersonators preen and pose to the bemusement be·muse tr.v. be·mused, be·mus·ing, be·mus·es 1. To cause to be bewildered; confuse. See Synonyms at daze. 2. To cause to be engrossed in thought. of passers by. Just off Omotosando is the Laforet department store, a huge temple to conspicuous consumption conspicuous consumption n. The acquisition and display of expensive items to attract attention to one's wealth or to suggest that one is wealthy. Noun 1. containing around 100 small boutiques. Mindful of the need to keep up to date, the store has undergone a recent renovation and as part of this, Klein Dytham Architecture (KDA kDa Kilodaltons (molecular weight) KDA Kentucky Department of Agriculture KDA Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace (Norway) KDA Kachin Defense Army KDA Karachi Development Authority ) were asked to reorganize the entrance to the complex and express Laforet's new identity - no mean feat given the limitations of space and surging crowds of shoppers. KDA's response is typical of their playful, inventive approach that deftly surfs the wave of Japanese popular culture. The practice's conic inflatable billboard (AR June 2000) stopped traffic and became a local landmark. At Laforet, KDA designed a series of curvaceous cur·va·ceous adj. Having the curves of a full or voluptuous figure. cur·va  ceous·ly adv. structures resembling cartoon trees arranged along the edge of the road in front of the store. In the distant past, real trees lined the street, but most have since been removed. The shiny, stainless steel-clad substitutes bring back memories of the vanished vegetation and have numerous functions - display case, sign, bench and rubbish receptacle. Together they define a bold, colourful threshold to the revived Laforet. Tiles shaped like the trees pave the area around the building, drawing together the various elements and unifying the entrance zone. Sensuous yet durable, the gleaming contours of the trees have rapidly become another local landmark, enlivening en·liv·en tr.v. en·liv·ened, en·liv·en·ing, en·liv·ens To make lively or spirited; animate. en·liv en·er n. and animating an·i·mate tr.v. an·i·mat·ed, an·i·mat·ing, an·i·mates 1. To give life to; fill with life. 2. To impart interest or zest to; enliven: the public realm. STREET FURNITURE, TOKYO, JAPAN ARCHITECT KLEIN DYTHAM 1 The line of trees defines the entrance to the popular Laforet department store behind. 2 The gleaming structures can be used as display cases or hoardings. Benches provide a respite from the rigours of shopping. 3 Detail of tree. Panels of 20mm thick tempered glass are held In curved stainless-steel frames. 4 The amoebic a·moe·bic adj. Variant of amebic. trees have a quirky quirk n. 1. A peculiarity of behavior; an idiosyncrasy: "Every man had his own quirks and twists" Harriet Beecher Stowe. 2. , cartoon-like appeal. Architect Klein Dytham Architecture, Tokyo |
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