Audi Showroom

Audi-Bulgaria commissioned the design of a showroom space, dedicated to the exhibit of new models of the company. The starting point for the design concept was a ‘string’ of words that break down the essential qualities of the modern car into material qualities: reflection, gloss, fluid, simplicity, fragmentation, detail, layering, transparency, illumination, elegance, power, lightness... These informed the overall composition and the range and combination of materials and colours used.

The overall space is a 14x14 m. square which can accommodate four cars, a meeting zone and a services zone. A big 14 x 5 m. wall with distinct corporate branding in bright orange is an intense background for the whole set-up. The different functional areas are all separated by highly reflective glossy surfaces.

The floor is constructed as a 2x2.75 m. grid of 10 mm. thick durable clear plastic panels. The perception of great depth and fluidity of the reflections has been achieved by applying several layers of different shades of dark grey and black paints. This creates the visual illusion of objects floating above a pool of oil. The surfaces that form the services area are the same as the floor panels, but continued vertically.
The scene is structured and hold together by the ‘rigidity’ of an orthogonally applied floor grid in orange. 

Two ‘zigzag’ glass walls are positioned in the middle of the space and in front of the meeting area. These glass screens act as semitranslucent ‘kaleidoscopic’ devices that reflect & refract, overlay & highlight, divide & connect. They also direct the flow of people around the exhibits. Each glass section of the screens is fixed in place on both sides by metal plates, bolted firmly to the floor. The top ends are connected with brackets to the neighbouring sections to a constant angle of 140 degrees. This simple construction creates a structurally sound, free standing glass curtain that is 308 mm. deep.

Very fast sequences of speeded-up footage of moving cars and dashboard details is projected onto the glass screens to add another layer visual dynamics of the space.