louis vuitton sanlitun opens in beijing with a fluid glass facade by jun aoki

"With the facade of Louis Vuitton Sanlitun in Beijing, architect Jun Aoki draws from the physical qualities of Taihu stones, long associated with classical Chinese gardens. Here, the motif is translated into an outer skin of hand-curved glass panels. Each panel carries irregular contours and subtle variations, forming a textured surface that shifts in tone as daylight changes across the streets of Beijing."

"The building introduces an organic, multi-layered glass facade and a vertically organized interior that brings retail, hospitality, and exhibition spaces into a single building. The project extends Jun Aoki's long collaboration with the House, following earlier works in Tokyo and Osaka. In Beijing, the architect applies a refined approach to surface, enclosure, and daylight, responding to the urban intensity of Sanlitun through material density and calibrated transparency."

Maison Louis Vuitton Sanlitun opens in Beijing within the Sanlitun district as a new Louis Vuitton flagship designed by Jun Aoki. The building features an organic, multi-layered, hand-curved glass facade inspired by Taihu stones, with irregular panels producing textured, chromatic shifts as daylight and atmosphere change. A secondary envelope provides thermal performance and weather protection. Interiors are vertically organized around a central atrium spanning three levels, integrating retail, hospitality, and exhibition functions and maintaining visual contact with the exterior through the glass skin. The design responds to urban intensity through material density, calibrated transparency, and refined control of surface, enclosure, and daylight.

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine