Mirror of the Sky "- Design of Apple's Fifth Avenue Store in New York, USA

The project was jointly developed by a design team led by Apple's Chief Design Officer Jonathan Ive and an engineering team from Foster+Partners. By carefully stripping away historical layers and sensitively restoring glass cubes, Apple's Fifth Avenue flagship store activates the square by creating three facades of entrances and exits, showcasing Apple's spirit of continuous progress and innovation.

The square is a perfect stage to showcase Apple's values, including photography, music, programming, art, and design. When people enter the space along the wide steps, they become a part of the bustling city life of New York. From 58th Street to 59th Street, the linear fountain and stone seats shaded by trees create a resting place for citizens in busy traffic, forming a quiet buffer zone. In addition, there are two independent auxiliary entrances next to it, leading to the shops below.

The flagship store of the glass cube is decorated with nine beautiful innovative art installations, which are arranged in a grid like pattern as "mirrors of the sky". These public sculptures allow visitors to interact with the famous New York City skyline in a completely new way. Their seamless curved shapes allow people to sit and rest while also seeing the reflected urban architecture in the mirror. These 'Sky Mirrors' conceal a circulating cooling system that absorbs solar energy while preventing frost, allowing visitors to use them year-round. Mirror glass can also reflect twice as much sunlight into the store.

In the center of the square is a unique glass cube, symbolizing the center of the activity, leading people into the shops below. Visitors follow the circular elevator or spectacular stainless steel staircase to the bottom of the glass cube. Each component of these stairs and elevators is made of mirrored stainless steel, reflecting the surrounding landscape and energy. These carefully selected materials blur the architectural form, and the infinite reflection of light and skyline creates an exciting and stimulating experience.

The grand hall below the square echoes the public square above, and the cloud shaped ceiling made of three-dimensional curved fabric cleverly combines artificial and natural light to adapt to the changing daylight tones during the day, bringing unprecedented experience. Even in low light conditions, the light around the skylight will be brighter and gradually weaken, giving the impression of natural light flooding the interior. A halo around each skylight provides focused illumination to highlight the products on the table. The ventilation system is hidden inside the stone floor, which can intelligently respond to outdoor weather and optimize energy consumption.