In a mezzanine inside a residential building in Leblon, a luxury district just south of Ipanema, Brazil, MNMA studio designed the interiors of Haight’s boutique, a Brazilian brand of monochrome swimwear. According to the clothing’s minimalism, the concept focused on primitivist forms, colors and materials, which celebrate a return to the origins with a reference also to the organic issue.

The main challenge was coping with the very irregular space’s structure, in particular a large central and load-bearing marble column, that was impossible to remove. André Pepato and Mariana Schmidt, the founding architects of the studio, decided to place a glass box over a new slab and its concrete stair complement, configuring a subtle second floor exclusively for dressing.

Italian partners Passalacqua developed specifically for this project tonic cements, paints and other clay-based coatings, and the sculptural space is defined by unpolished stones, exposed concrete, a special mineral painting and freestyle shapes that, overall , return a warm and archetypal, sacred, environment. Even the sidewalk and the façade were rebuilt in stone to make inside and outside uniform and welcome the customers at first sight.