partisans sculpts arches into limestone at toronto’s royal de versailles rolex boutique

royal de Versailles’ new Rolex boutique opens in Toronto

Using parametric modeling and CNC technology, Partisans sculpts a dynamic limestone storefront for Royal de Versailles’ new Rolex Boutique in Toronto. At the intersection of technology and craft, the geometries of the watch are translated into architecture through the exploration of stone techniques. The seemingly brutal material transforms into a delicate and airy medium through elegant contours and smooth bends. Against the steel of the modernist high-rise that houses the space, the unconventional material boasts a structural solution that frees modern architecture from its rigid constraints.

The existing structure is brought into the 21st century, its facade’s language seamlessly integrated down into the mullions of the storefront, where the rhythm of the columns recalls the patterns of a watch’s band links. As the mullions trace down the exterior, they begin to slowly bend into subtle and graceful arches. On the east facade, a parametric composition developed by computational designer Arturo Tedeschi is etched into the stone. The composition was produced by an algorithmic design whose forms follow the geometric logic of engravings seen on watch face dials, while also interacting in a generative manner that is unique to the structure’s elevation.

Partisans’ digitally fabricates the fluid stone facade

Aided by cutting-edge digital technologies, Partisans’ design reflects the high-precision craft and construction that has defined Rolex’s iconic timepieces for over a century. The curvilinear window openings reflect polished watch face crystals and the choice of white limestone emulates the durable, craft-forward ambition that contributes to the watches’ timelessness. The digitally fabricated facade connects sinuously with the existing exterior as well as the new interior, with each stone bay cut according to measurements found through 3D scans of the modernist building. The window detailing needed to meet the exterior stonework at exact locations, with a degree of accuracy within a quarter inch, and also needed to allow for easy maintenance and proper energy performance for what is essentially an unprecedented glazing design in the city of Toronto.

The ethereal effect of the east facade is the result of CNC technology. Feeding a robotic arm the algorithmic design, each panel exhibits as a dense yet airy texture, which architecturally showcases the layered qualities of a watch. ‘A watch’s most sophisticated features are not readily observable – exquisitely crafted dials offer chromatic plays that are never identical to themselves, and fluted bezels reflect light at different angles, making the watch shimmer with the wrist’s movement,’ notes Arturo Tedeschi. This same philosophy has been applied to the Royal de Versailles Rolex Boutique’s east facade, whose layered complexity is perceived through the subtle vibration that light creates as it grazes the micro-texture digitally crafted on the stone panels. Using algorithmic modeling tools and CNC milling techniques, the Toronto-based architects have generated a digital model and then realized a tridimensional texture so dense and complex it gives the stone a textile-like appearance.

project info:

name: Royal de Versailles’ Rolex Boutique
architect: Partisans | @partisansarchitecture

lead designer: Alex Josephson 

location: Toronto, Canada

photographer: doublespace photo | @2spacephoto, Teddy Shropshire

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