Ekaterinburg store trademark BALDININI Alexander Kuznetsov

Passing the gallery

Text: Anna Vergasova

A photo: Karen Manko

Project author: Aleksandr Kuznetsov

Magazine: H (76) 2003

The Yekaterinburg store of the BALDININI trademark (Karl Marx St., 25) is the undisputed champion in the Trans-Urals in terms of the number of lamps for one pair of shoes. The minimalist space, invented by the design bureau "Kub-A", resembles an operating room. The authors of the interior used the trade halls as a field for a conceptual experiment, where color, light, decoration materials and shop equipment are tools for creating a void space, a sterile background that should highlight the “authenticity” of handmade shoes and shoes. Hard lines and many parallel planes (a low horizon of long shelves, a transparent showcase-sarcophagus and podiums emitting a blue glow) act as an extreme contrast to the natural textures of the shoes sold here. Probably, the comfort of this deliberately cold space remains questionable, but the success of a radical experiment is beyond doubt.