Story of an eight-meter Cantilevered table 

– Exploring the structure and scale-

An urge to resist gravity and to build higher and wider space has been one of the driving forces of the history of architecture. To build up stories is to fight gravity and thus the advance of architecture is to go against challenges nature poses. Building up against the force of nature truly came into words when working on this project. DICA, a private bar and a dining place, was a step we took to broaden our perspective of architecture and design.

When working for commercial spaces, we often think that our job is more like an architect or even an urban planner than a designer. Because many needs are becoming increasingly complex. For example, the demand was to provide areas that serves public purposes, other to fulfill private needs and areas to process products and services. Moreover, we had to take into consideration the plans for efficient movement and divisions of space that support all. We have believed that all of these fundamentals are closer to the essence of the Masterplan than decorative elements.

DICA used to be an old building that was used as a storage, and adding various materials and walls did not go with the space. We wanted to 'architect' one distinct structure in the space that can separate areas but also can serve various purposes: a bar and a table that could also work as a division. Adapting an intuitive design that can identify the space not having to add any explanations was the key.

We remember seeing cantilevered buildings in photographs and marveling at them. At the same time, I also remember being surprised when we saw it in real life, because it was so unexpectedly ordinary. Perhaps it was because the cantilevered building was so huge, beyond someone’s perceived scale, and when we saw it in person, it felt as if it was natural, not marvelous.

Standing on the shoulders of the giants, we wanted to add a pinch of imagination:
to bring the cantilever structure into smaller scale that is tangible.

“Structure and scale are all that matter” was the motto we rooted from. The eight-meter-long cantilevered table in the side of the floor captures customers attention. The table seems unrealistic even more than the huge cantilevered building in that we can perceive it in its own scale. The science and engineering behind this floating table will inspire and attract customers to enjoy the structural experience at DICA.