Offhand Practice Designs A Cave-Like Interior For This Boutique Gallery In Shanghai

From the street, a carved archway leads visitors into the space. Walking through a low door, as if they were creeping into a cave entryway, guests to the gallery are presented with a narrow, textured interior that is divided into four rooms set at differing levels—a considered approach by Offhand Practice to emphasize the feeling of descending into, and resurfacing from, an underground shelter. The gallery’s only source of natural light is from the door of the front entrance as well as a courtyard space at the back, with a series of artificial skylights and unevenly-positioned lights to emulate the way light can puncture through caves. Curved platforms in the walls appear as if they have been carved out of surfaces to exhibit the design objects.