Zazen Bear flagship store in New York
Within a space designed to encourage peace, tranquility and harmony, Zazen features products, including jewelry, housewares and Zen spirited items; wellness programming, including yoga and meditation classes; and an art gallery, presently exhibiting painting and calligraphy work by the Japanese artist, Seiho.
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The design of the store echoes the soft curves of the brand’s meditative symbol, the Zazen Bear, a plush, stuffed bear sitting in the lotus position, intended to act as a reminder to stop, breathe deeply, and embrace the inner self. The curves and the symmetry of the bear, which follow the golden ratio, became the starting point for a design aimed at generating a calming environment. The store entry is a threshold mediating between the bustling streets of Soho and a space that fosters serenity, comfort, and meditation—a multi-use space of Zen.
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The atmosphere is achieved by the synthesis of materials and organic forms. A double-height plant wall comprising of purifying plants—Philodendron-Cordatum and Marble-Queen Pothos—traverses the space vertically, linking the retail level and the sub-grade gallery and meditation center. The lower level, accessed by a metal stair with inset wood treads, features an oil-finished, white oak, tongue-and-groove floor alongside a wood-slat bench with built-in lighting at which the plant wall terminates.
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Pietra di Vals stone, featured throughout the upper floor, is complemented by the hand-finished, white-oak millwork elements that include curved walls, display cases, and wood members of varying lengths, which surround a large-scale elliptical light fixture. The upper, retail level terminates in a circular room made distinct by its fabric-lined walls and illuminated by light strips embedded in the ceiling that follow the curve of the room.
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