New York-based firm Stephan Jaklitsch Architects has completed marc jacob's first freestanding flagship store in the aoyama shopping district of tokyo, japan.
Offering 2,800 square feet of retail space, the new boutique employs a 'kosakubutsu', a common building element that sits above the structure's official 'shadow line' to double the visual height of the design. 
Bounded by world-renowned architecture as well as structures of a quiet residential neighborhood, the design responds to the immediate context in its presence and aesthetics.
The facade, which consists of three clear zones, feature different treatment and materiality to correspond with the language of the interior: a transparent threshold is given to the street level to encourage open interaction between the store and the street, while the storey that hosts the women's ready-to-wear items is made private by striated terra-cotta. the 'lantern' level, or kosakubutsu, consists of perforated metal panels that assemble together to create a porous and bouyant look during the evening.
