LOCATED IN ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT COMMERCIAL GALLERIES IN THE CITY OF PORTO ALEGRE, “EL TÉ” – CASA DE CHÁS (TEA HOUSE) FOCUSES ON THE SALE OF TEA AND EVERYTHING THAT INVOLVES THE PRODUCT.
THE PROJECT CONCEPT WAS BORN FROM THE IMMERSION IN THE WORLD OF TEA. ALL ITS COLOURS, TEXTURES AND AROMAS WERE THE STARTING POINT FOR CREATING THIS ENVIRONMENT. WOOD WAS SELECTED AS THE PRIMARY MATERIAL OF THE PROJECT, ACTING AS A NEUTRAL BASE WHERE THE COLOURFUL HERBS STAND OUT.
AS THE SHOP WINDOW WAS VISUALLY OBSTRUCTED BY THE WALL OF THE SHOP NEXT DOOR, AND WAS QUITE A DISTANCE FROM THE SIDEWALK, THE STORE NEEDED A VISUAL ATTRACTION THAT AROUSES THE INTEREST OF THOSE WHO PASS THROUGH IT. FOR THIS REASON, A SYNERGY BETWEEN THE ELEMENT OF VISUAL COMMUNICATION AND ARCHITECTURE WAS SOUGHT.
FROM THE GRAPHIC REPRESENTATION OF THE WORDS “EL TE” CHOSEN AS STORE NAME, AND THAT LITERALLY MEANS “THE TEA”, A PICTOGRAM IDENTIFICATION OF THE TEA HOUSE – THAT IS BOTH VISUAL A COMMUNICATION AND THE MAIN PIECE OF FURNITURE – WAS DESIGNED. THIS GOES BEYOND THE SCALE OF A USUAL SIGN COMPOSING THE FACADE AND INTERIOR DESIGN OF THE SHOP.
ON THE STOREFRONT, FACING THE STREET, A BACKLIGHT WAS IMPLEMENTED. IT FUNCTIONS AS AN URBAN LANTERN, AN EXCITING SURPRISE TO THOSE WHO PASS BY THE STORE BY NIGHT. THE DEPTH OF THE LETTER “E” ON THE FACADE EXTENDS BEYOND THE OUTER LIMIT, PENETRATING INSIDE THE STORE AND ACTING AS THE MAIN DESIGN ELEMENT. THIS ELEMENT HOUSES THE PREPARATION DESK, THE CASH DESK AND SAMPLES OF 30 VARIATIONS OF TEA AND INFUSIONS. THE SAMPLES ARE ARRANGED IN SMALL DRAWERS BELOW CHEST LEVEL, SO THAT CLIENTS CAN SMELL THE PRODUCT BEFORE BUYING. BELOW THE EACH DRAWER, A COLOURED STRIP IDENTIFIES THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF THE TEA, AND CREATES A COLOURFUL SCHEME.
Project year: 2012
Area: 32m² sqm shopfloor + 32 sqm uper floor storage
Location: Porto Alegre | Brazil
Architects: Gustavo Sbardelotto and Mariana Bogarin
Photographs: Marcelo Donadussi