OMA / AMO transforms common materials into high-tech finishes for Stone Island Chicago

The Italian brand Stone Island is known both for stylish performance wear and for pioneering textile designs that incorporate highly unconventional materials. Over its 40 years in business, the company has produced steel-coated polyesters pressure-dyed for maximum durability, and incorporated transparent surgical-grade mesh into fabric to reveal the guts of a garment without sacrificing toughness.

For Stone Island’s new Chicago store, OMA / AMO worked in the spirit of the brand’s wild textiles, configuring everyday materials into unexpected displays. Nothing is as it seems: beyond a ripe persimmon–hued vestibule, the at-first-glance blackish-brown concrete walls are actually paneled with burnt, sandblasted cork. (Cork is a material constant across Stone Island stores worldwide.)

Hefty stone tables are really made from sealed and pressed paper, while the fitting room is ensconced in corrugated steel panels coated in sand. Cool track lighting is hidden in rows of store-spanning extruded Tyvek triangles, lending a sawtooth appearance to the ceiling.

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