I met with the architect Gwenael Nicolas in Milan. It was a favorable moment: the opening of the new Dolce&Gabbana boutique on Via Montenapoleone, in the heart of the city’s fashion quad. This project comes on the heels of the opening of another store of the Sicilian brand in Tokyo, where Nicolas – French by birth – has lived and worked for 25 years: the city where he opened his studio Curiosity, overturning the traditional concepts of retail space.

Gwenael, how did your collaboration with Dolce&Gabbana begin?
After having seen projects I had done for other brands (see Interni May 2016), Domenico Dolce was curious to discover how I would develop a new retail idea for his company, naturally conserving the Dolce&Gabbana ‘touch.’ A real challenge. The idea was to contaminate the extraordinary world of Sicilian Baroque with different cultures. To amaze, to innovate, to change. And, above all, to find a balance, a harmony between ‘parallel worlds’ without ever erasing the differences…

…and then?
I met with Domenico, we discussed their brand and the possibility of working together. Some time later he proposed working on a large-scale project that would involve all of the brand’s boutiques. The challenge was to narrate different stories, one for each city, to reflect its history and culture, underlining the unique character of the place. First of all I thought about Tokyo, my adopted city, where I have lived and worked for many years. Of course I could not help but display the unique character of style Made in Italy, for which Dolce&Gabbana represents a symbol on an international level. But I wanted to take one more step…

In which direction?
I wanted to take the path of experimentation. For me that means creating connections between two different worlds: the real world and the immaterial world, for example, the digital universe. In other words, I wanted to create spaces that had the power of reality (real places where products are bought and sold), the power of the digital world (websites for online sales) and, finally, the power of places full of charm, like museums, where beauty is the true protagonist. I was very surprised by the fact that Domenico shared this curiosity to explore such different dimensions.

On the other hand, it is no coincidence that your studio is called Curiosity, with a multidisciplinary approach…
True. My whole career has turned around two important categories of reference: experimentation, as in my art installations – like the one I recently created for Swarovski or for Design Week 2016 at the Bagatti Valsecchi Museum in Milan (see Interni June 2016) – and the design of shops, showrooms, commercial spaces. With the two boutiques done for Dolce&Gabbana, first in Tokyo and then in Milan, for the first time I have combined my two ‘parallel’ worlds: the force of emotions and the power of design. After then years of work, it was very important to make the artistic sphere meet up with the commercial sphere.

What does this union generate?
A new energy, that stimulates curiosity in people. You can engage them, surprise them, with something unexpected, something emotionally striking. The indispensable starting point is the connection between spaces and products: many designers focus above all on how to make very beautiful stores, but they never think about what will happen inside them, the experiences that will unfold. I want to convey a fantasy world.

How?
By inserting elements of discovery, unpredictable things. And by developing a pre-programmed sequence that involves movement and time, using unexpected, precious, rare materials… in the Tokyo boutique of Dolce&Gabbana, for example, I played with the reflections of gold-color metal and light, to create shadows and magically erase them…

You work with the most important fashion firms, not only Dolce&Gabbana but also Fendi, Louis Vuitton, Berluti: what is your idea of the luxury business?
The connection between the passion of those who spend hours creating precious, marvelous, unique fashion, and the passion of those who want to discover them. My job is to connect these people, to create a link, to destroy distance.
And to make you have an experience: what they call ‘experiential sales.’ An example: those who think they know the Mona Lisa just because they have seen a photo are wrong… You have to see the painting directly, in order to ‘sense’ it…

So you approach the project with an utterly new perspective…
Yes, but you always have to have faith and accept risk with an open, dynamic mind. From this viewpoint it was very stimulating to work with a ‘client’ like Domenico, who always pushes you to find something new, surprising…

Would you tell us about the project in Milan? What are the differences between the stores in Milan and Tokyo?
In the boutique on Via Montenapoleone the golden metal of Tokyo has been replaced by the precious presence of green Brazilian marble, elm briar and onyx. The idea was to convey a sense of utterly Milanese elegance, to match that of the splendid buildings of the famous ‘fashion quad’ with its small streets and elegant stores. In short, a place full of charm I wanted to emphasize…
On the other hand, a design always has to play with the senses and imagination. When you enter the boutique in Milan, after admiring the beautiful facade of the 19th-century building, you have the impression of living in a different dimension: the ceiling and the lighting create an amazing sensation of space and luminosity, while the precious materials and fine craftsmanship of the furnishings speak of the excellence of Italian artisans.
Of course there is also the Sicily of Dolce&Gabbana: all the energy of the Baroque, with large gilded mirrors and brocades cover the seating. But it is tempered, balanced, to interpret the resonance of a space in the fashion district of Milan.

So you like to play with contradictions?
Simplicity and complexity are the two poles around which all my work gravitates. But emotions are the real driving force.

 

Interview Gilda Bojardi – Editing Laura Ragazzola – Photos Alessandra Chemollo