MVRDV has created a glittering store for Tiffany & Co, featuring a diamond-studded facade in Shanghai, China. 

Named Tiffany Façade Shanghai Taikoo-Li, the 533-square-metre retail store is located in the Taikoo-Li Qiantan retail development in Shanghai.

The store, designed specifically for the American luxury jewelry brand Tiffany & Co, has a façade reminiscent of jewels that was inspired by Tiffany's past and identity. The exterior screen of the façade, which is made up of 6,988 individually crafted glass diamonds, is reminiscent of Tiffany's well-known jewelry designs. 

These components give the surrounding area a glittering effect during the day by reflecting and refracting light, and at night the LED lighting on the façade lets the store shine in an endless variety of colors.

Located in the center of Taikoo Li Qiantan, a retail center completed in 2021, the store occupies a prominent position.

A diamond façade is a bold and deceptively simple concept that sets MVRDV's design apart from the rest of the retail zone, which is dedicated to a wide range of luxury brands.

This concept, despite its seeming simplicity, is supported by a thorough knowledge of Tiffany's background and identity. The project is an extension of MVRDV's Tiffany façade design approach, which Changi Airport in Singapore saw firsthand implementation of last year.

This strategy honors Tiffany's history by emphasizing ideas like inventive materiality, a strong sense of three-dimensionality, and the capacity to astonish spectators. The glass diamond screen in Shanghai is a manifestation of all these ideas. 

These are arranged to create the impression of being haphazardly dispersed, thinning out for better visibility where necessary, like next to the café on the first floor of the building.

These glass diamonds each weigh 1.5 kg and measure 21 centimeters in width and 13 centimeters in height. 

They are suspended from thin, highly tensioned steel cables that are sandwiched between the structure's top and bottom frames and have a mirrored steel finish applied to them. The diamonds are held in place by tiny, inconspicuous steel fixtures that are specially made to prevent movement or spinning.

Because of the meticulous design, the façade only has mechanical connections, which means that it can be disassembled entirely and its components recycled or repurposed in the future.

Similar to MVRDV's earlier design for the Tiffany's store at Singapore Airport, the Shanghai store's façade features a distinctive element from the surrounding area; in this case, it was inspired by Shanghai's skyline's vivid light displays.

As a result, the project incorporates LED lighting that changes color and uses less energy into the façade's top and bottom. 

The façade can be lit in any color, including the iconic Tiffany Blue ®, and the glass diamonds' refractive qualities will bring each color to life.

Image © Tiffany Co

Image © Tiffany Co

Image © Tiffany Co

MVRDV completed the transformation of a 19th-century building for electric car manufacturer company with rooftop pavilion. Additionally, the firm unveiled design for a tribune-like affordable housing with interconnected green spaces in Eindhoven. The firm is also working on the Gate M West Bund Dream Center in Shanghai. 

Project facts

Project Name: Tiffany Façade Shanghai Taikoo-Li 

Location: Shanghai, China

Year: 2022–2024 

Client: Tiffany & Co.

Size and Programme: 533 m2 retail façade

Architect: MVRDV

Founding Partner in charge: Jacob van Rijs

Partner: Fokke Moerel

Design Team: Aser Giménez Ortega, Elien Deceuninck, Monica Di Salvo, Simone Costa, Türker Naci Şaylan, Xiaoyi Qin, Natalia Lipczuk

Copyright: MVRDV Winy Maas, Jacob van Rijs, Nathalie de Vries

Contractor: Permasteelisa Hong Kong

All images © Wen Studio unless otherwise stated. 

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