Art meets retail at Casa Loewe Singapore Ion Orchard
Art meets retail therapy in the gallery-like setting at Casa Loewe Singapore Ion Orchard.
By Asih Jenie -
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In the age of e-commerce, Instalive sales and constant online deals, what still draws shoppers to physical stores? For Spanish luxury fashion house Loewe, it is a shopping experience in a rarified air of a gallery-like setting populated by intriguing artworks by both renowned and emerging artists, beautiful designer objects and furniture and, of course, exquisitely made clothes, bags and accessories.
This successful retail therapy recipe by Loewe creative director Jonathan Anderson that’s been deployed in Madrid, London, Tokyo and Beijing, Casa Loewe has landed in Ion Orchard.
Opened at the end of October, the 340 sq m boutique showcases the complete range of women’s and men’s ready to wear, bags, small leather goods, soft accessories, eyewear, jewellery and shoes. All are artfully interspersed with pieces of art, craft and design curated by Jonathan to look like an art collector’s home.
Fair-faced concrete surfaces, handsome timber panelling and handmade ceramic walls serve as a backdrop to the boutique’s activities.
The curated objects inhabiting the space include a chandelier from Antique Associates, sculptural blue and orange Utrecht armchairs by Dutch artist Gerrit Thomas Rietveld, Conoid Cushion chairs by George Nakashima, specially commissioned benches by Loewe Foundation Craft Prize 2019 finalists Jim Partridge and Liz Walmsley, carpets by John Allen, and a coffee table by celebrated curator and designer Axel Vervoordt.
Art is central to the Casa Loewe concept, and the Ion Orchard boutique features artworks by nine artists who have a long-standing relationship with the brand.
These include the hand-dyed tapestry A Positive Light by American textile artist John Faught and pieces from British ceramicists Betty Blandino and Nicolas Homoky as well as contemporary Japanese artist Shihoko Fukumoto.
Each artwork is carefully positioned to add a sense of discovery as shoppers explore and move through the retail space. Adding to this is a pop- up space near the entrance, where Loewe exhibits capsule collections and extraordinary art projects.