A new format for Electa bookshops has been designed by Migliore+Servetto, by creating new cultural spaces in Rome, in the Colosseum Archaeological Park (Colosseum First Gallery, Second Gallery, San Gregorio al Palatino and Clivo Palatino), and in Venice, in the spaces of the Biennale.
Project Name: Electa Bookshop Colosseo
Studio Name: Migliore+Servetto
The interventions have some features in common such as an extremely light furniture system in the design, which stands out for the choice of light hues and the transparency of the micro-perforated metal sheeting, however, at the same time, each store is characterized by precise color variations, with the aim of preserving its identity. Therefore, in addition to the light shades, there are chromatic elements in perforated sheet, which act as a backdrop, different for each store: the sulphurous yellow for Colosseum First Gallery, the scarlet red for Colosseum Second Gallery, the green celadon for San Gregorio al Palatino and yellow cadmium for Clivo Palatino.
Within each space, to connect and highlight the different parts of the store, the format provides full-height graphic fields, such as backdrops of the furniture, to accentuate the identity and uniqueness of the places. In the same direction also goes the design, between memory and irony, by Studio Sonnoli, a graphic backdrop that alternates harmoniously with the furnishings.
The Clivo Palatino store, the last store that opened, is located inside a constructed lower volume and is characterized by a large ribbon window overlooking the Archaeological Park. For this store, Migliore+Servetto has designed a series of ad hoc bases, placed under the windows. To overcome this furniture some mobile towers allow you to set up the showcase in a versatile way, in a continuous addition of perspectives, ensuring the visitors an optimal fruition of the suggestive landscape.
The new bookshops designed by Migliore+Servetto suggest an integrated system in the exhibition that exalts the richness of the content and puts the visitor in dialogue with the imposing and monumental context in which each bookstore is inserted. As a matter of fact, the set-up has its strength in being a flexible system, adaptable and interchangeable in the context of the different needs and sizes of environments and to offer different levels of interpretation.
There are five main elements which structure the exhibition space: wall display elements to accommodate the different product categories; wall focus elements, for the targeted presentation of individual products or themes; double-sided central elements with function of definition of paths and flows; thematic islands, for an exposition of individual themes; checkout element, for customer support and assistance.
Both murals and islands are characterized by “the frame”, with its ability to symbolically and functionally circumscribe the merchandising displayed. Indeed, the frame element works synergistically with the product offer, becoming a repeated, added, juxtaposed sign as needed, acting as a background as well as a support for the products themselves.
The new spaces, created by Migliore+Servetto, not only put the visitor at the center and think about his or her movements in the space, but are also conceived as a kind of contemporary Wunderkammer, where the visitor is surrounded by memorable and meaningful objects proposed by Electa, in which you can get lost. The bookshop is not only a sales space, but it becomes also a narrative landscape, a place of discovery that turns in memory, and stimulate cultural growth, through a valorization of the offer of contents and a constant dialogue with the remarkable architectural context.
The redesign of the Electa bookshop in Rome is the result of a series of interventions to upgrade the Electa bookshop in the spaces of the Venice Biennale (Cà Giustinian and Corderie), inaugurated during the 59th International Art Exhibition, and at the Lido for the temporary store of the 79th edition of the International Film Festival.
