MDO by cure and penabad architecture + urban design

MDO building by cure and penabad architecture + urban designimage © steven brooke

the MDO building by cúre and penabad architecture and urban design firm is situated along southwest 84th street, one lot south of tamiami trial in miami, florida. its immediate context is defined by a myriad of strip shopping malls and speculative office buildings set hundreds of feet from the main road to accommodate expansive surface parking lots. the result is a cacophony of structures that is emblematic of miami’s suburban landscape.

MDO reverses the typical urban patterns of the area by pressing the building close to the street and placing the surface parking lot along the rear of the property.  moreover, it sets itself in sharp contrast to its immediate neighbors by developing an architectural language of abstraction and restraint – where a few important elements, such as the recessed entry with its shop-front window, are set within large expanses of mute white walls that house nearly five thousand men’s suits within.the main double-volume retail space is the central focus of the building. its thickened walls are lined with stacked rows of merchandise and its ceiling is composed of modified pre-fabricated double tees. the heightened volume is an unexpected spatial experience flooded with natural light and in direct opposition to the cavernous, artificially-lit interiors, characteristic of the adjacent strip malls and office parks.

MDO front elevationimage © steven brooke

MDO rear elevationimage © steven brooke

MDO cornerimage © steven brooke

MDO signageimage © steven brooke

MDO, night viewimage © steven brooke

MDO sketches

MDO schematic sketches

MDO schematic sketches

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