Hart Bakery / Spacon & X

A new kind of recipe for designing a bakery. Spacon & X was enlisted by Richard Hart and his team, to expand the ecosystem of HART’s popular bakeries around Copenhagen. They were brought in to create a spatial design with custom-made furniture, lamps, and artwork for their new location in Mærsehuset, on the island of Holmen, in central Copenhagen. A design that reflects the craftsmanship behind HART’s own product. A key aspect when producing the furniture was to ensure that it can be used externally, meaning that it can be incorporated into possible future locations of HART, taking longevity and sustainability into account.

Mærsehuset is a more than 200 years old listed building, part of Copenhagen’s cultural heritage, awarded with the Mies van der Rohe award, as well as the Københavns Kommunes Architecture Award. Originally, the building housed the Danish navy’s “marshes” – or mast basket, and its horizontal panels and falu-red mud color have been retained. During the renovation, the picturesque wood construction and its historical characteristics were preserved.

Custom-made furniture. Throughout the premises of Hart Mærsehuset, Spacon & X have custom designed a variety of furniture objects and spatial elements, acknowledging the buildings’ historical and cultural legacy combined with the innovative craftsmanship of HART bakery.

The wide bar is made of solid oak wood and treated with linseed oil. The shelves, tables, and chairs are designed by Spacon & X and are made in the same type of solid oak wood and were handcrafted by Nørrebros Snedkerservice to manifest local craftsmanship. The shelves behind the bar are specifically designed with an aluminum background to amplify the exposure of the bread on the shelf, as the material reflects the light that comes through the ample windows on each side of the building.

A key aspect when S&X Productions were producing the furniture was to ensure that it can be incorporated into other possible future locations of HART, taking longevity and sustainability into account. Above the bar and throughout the cafe area, the handmade lamp creates an inviting setting with its light and organic shape.

Another custom-made element is the wall pieces. Made of French bakers’ ‘couche’ which is normally used to cure bread so that baguettes won’t stick together when they rise.

The couche is made of 100 % flax, woven in France, and hand-dyed with natural indigo to create the art piece.

Finally, Spacon & X designed a playful backdrop filled with the ‘’HART hand symbol’’ in the bathroom, allowing customers to interact with the design that becomes omnipresent in its reflection in the bathroom mirror. This was done as it is an essential part of Hart’s brand identity to engage people, which they have done by incorporating a ‘’bathroom selfie mirror concept’’ of customers sharing their pictures whilst engaging with the space.

Essentially, this new bakery does not only offer a wider range of bread and pastries but also an innovative design take on local craftsmanship as well as it is a tribute to the city’s cultural heritage.