LIVERPOOL INSURGENTES

A successful department store had moved
forward with plans to expand and occupy what
was once a very important open urban space at
the busy intersection of Insurgentes and Felix
Cuevas avenues in the southern quadrant of
Mexico City.

With the opening of a new subway line station
at the corner of the site, and its subsequent
increase in pedestrian traffic and transport
transfer activity, it became apparent that the
typical closed retail “big box” model had
to be questioned and a new identity given to
the existing store’s façade to achieve a more
dynamic urban presence and promote the brand.

We proposed to give the box a permeable an
animated envelope where inside activity can be
showcased and interact with urban activity. A
“deep wall” system where new programmatic
options can be explored blurring the line
between inside and outside and giving the user
and passer by a more interactive experience.

“To maintain attainability this project took full advantage of Mexico’s skilled craftsmen and rich tradition in metal work to overcome the unique challenges in fabrication and budget constraints”

Rojkind Arquitectos

A variety of temporary programs and/or displays
can be housed within the porous habitable
façade that becomes a mediator between the
busy surrounding urban condition and the
department store’s traditionally programmed
interiors.

Inspired by Moiré patterns and optical art the
2.8m deep wall façade consists of a three-layer
multi-sized hexagon system in fiberglass, steel,
aluminum and glass. The resulting spaces are
accessible from the interior through large
openings that reveal the inside of the store to
the passer by and vice versa and are connected
between them through stairs and ramps allowing
the dweller to navigate within the façade.

To maintain attainability this project took full
advantage of Mexico’s skilled craftsmen and
rich tradition in metal work to overcome the
unique challenges in fabrication and budget
constraints. The result of this “digital design /
local fabrication” model is unique in its high-
tech but crafted qualities.