AME JEWELRY, NYC
ame is a modern fine diamond jewelry brand that uses lab-grown, or ‘ame-grown’ diamonds which are set in precious metals. ame introduces an uncompromising point of view to its category with a consciousness towards nature and towards the retail experience worthy of the 21st century. It transcends fine diamond jewelry into the realm of lifestyle and everyday use with the intention to engage, inspire and create a space for emotions. ame proposes a new order of things: emotions and experience first.
Therefore, sensory environments that touch, inspire and create emotional landscapes were explored, and two environments were found most intriguing, one was nature-driven; the forest and the other was culinary-driven. Ame‘s store design is inspired by the values of both, however these values are introduced in a very subtle and abstract fashion and with ample place for interpretation.
ame was conceived as monochromatic which presents it as an open-ended character. The minimal pallet of charcoal black in the NY store renders the jewelry as the centerpiece of the spatial experience.
the design alludes to a very informal yet strongly emotional and holistic retail experience. While the forest initiated the spatial quality and the sequence of movement in the store, the culinary world inspired the intimate and personal moments one experiences while engaging with an object of desire. Both worlds are omnipresent in our daily life and both tick our innermost emotions.
The reflective surfaces of the store resonate with the spatial and sensorial qualities of the main sources of inspiration; a walk through a forest and culinary-inspired objects of desire. Spatially speaking, reflections introduce a sense of the infinite, an ephemeral presence of borders and the multifaceted layering of reality. Sensory speaking, reflections evoke a sense of magic and a playful fantasy. Once immersed in reflections we are intrigued by the overwhelming kinetic presence of the entire arrangement.
The store is located at the heart of the Cast Iron District in Soho; an epitome of American efficiency. The area evolved throughout the 19th century and buildings became cheaper, stronger and faster to build with the ability to reuse the molds for multiple structures. In the context of ame, one is struck by the beautiful shadows of the undulating details of the cast iron facades. In sunlight they bring out dramatic and sensual shadows, a reminder of the sun’s ability to convey such beautiful tectonic experiences which were completely banished by New York glass architecture. Moreover, they evoke a sense of industrial craft long gone and a sense of human proportions and care. These contextual insights are brought inside the store and infused into the story telling of ame NY, not as an ‘add-on’, but rather holistically infused with the brand’s DNA.
The geometry of the cast iron architecture was stripped to its very essence which resulted in the undulating wall panels which are now in the store. They have a subtle steel presence and an inspiring play of shadows that endows them with an intimate and a sensual embracing feel.
Creative Directors: Irene Kronenberg and Alon Baranowitz
Project Leader: Reut Ravhon
Team: Ira Miller, Jordan Weisberg
Lighting Design: RTLD, Tel-Aviv
Photographer: Amit Geron
