Every week, we highlight the FRAME Awards submissions that have received the most attention from our readers and jury. Below are the five most-viewed projects between 24 and 31 July. 

 Above and top: Finbarr Fallon

Iwagumi Air Scape

Eness

Iwagumi, or the method of arranging rocks in Japanese gardens and ponds, has a tradition of evoking natural elements of the landscape or to suggest the forms of auspicious animals. Iwagumi Air Scape by Eness scales this up, presenting an arrangement of giant inflatable ‘stones’ in front of the Singapore skyline (Exhibition). The project’s environmental considerations as well as the surreal presentation (they look like rocks during the day, and translucent orbs by night) elicited enthusiastic responses from the July jury. ‘Beautiful,’ commented juror Alexandra Cantacuzene, director of interior design at Al Futtaim Real Estate Group. ‘What a poetic implementation and contrast with the urban landscape around.

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 Photo: Kenta Hasegawa

Uni-ssentials by TDS New Balance

Atelier Write

This retail display designed by Atelier Write was designed to showcase a gender neutral capsule collection of wardrobe basics for New Balance (Pop-up Store). Tilted scaffolding and industrial shelving are used to suggest dynamism while also serving to visually organize the size of the clothing by hem length. Juror Paul Birkhead, cofounder and creative director at Syn Retail especially enjoyed the design, commenting that ‘the product display merges functionality, impact and aesthetic perfectly.’

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 Photo: Lillie Thompson

Sarah & Sebastian Armdale

Richards Stanisch

Fine jewellry brand Sarah & Sebastian’s Armdale branch was designed by Richards Stanisch to build a sense of homelike hospitality (Single-Brand Store). Nodding to the sea as an inspiration for the brand, the studio incorporated the textures and colours of kelp in the entranceway, floor and furniture, combining it with the shimmer of foil and reflective display cases. Clemence Pirajean, cofounder of Pirajean Lees and July juror noted how the project's ‘character and bold design decisions’ contributed to a successful retail space ‘which doesn’t overpower the brand’.

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 Photo: Kenta Hasegawa

House of Local Spirits

Atelier Salad

A 90-year old vacant house was transformed into a traditional-modern hybrid by Atelier Salad (House). The house, located in a shrinking Japanese fishing village, was built for a chef escaping the city and looking to live in a home that could also host members of the local community. The designers kept the massive wooden columns and supporting beams of the original structure, but adapted elements of the interior and wrapped the house in metal cladding to create a highly modern feel. ‘It is perhaps not a new idea to put metal cladding on an old house in order to save it,’ comments juror Peter Greenberg, partner at Ester Brukzus Architekten, ‘but this version is done with sensitivity and resonance with the surroundings.’

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 Photo: Asier Rua

Colab

Lucas Muñoz Muñoz

This office design (also covered on FRAMEweb in 2024) pushes the concept of circular renovation to the nth degree, succeeding in the creation of an aesthetically beautiful space with a story and a conscience (Material). All materials that could not be recycled were repurposed within the space, leading to creative solutions like metal floor risers used as coat hooks, or spent fluorescent tubes clustered together to make a new lighting object. The project is ‘a visionary renovation that transforms heritage into innovation,’ says Ina Nikolova, partner and senior project manager at Kinzo Architekten. ‘In a playful and poetic way it sets a powerful new standard for human-centered, sustainable design.’

See more here.