TOOLS FOR CHANGE
Tools For Change
Type: Retail, Exhibition, Design Build Location: San Juan Capistrano, CA Size: 1,000 sf Year: 2016
The new Tools For Change design repositions the shop at The Ecology Center as a more refined platform to communicate the core initiatives through a layered combination of retail display and exhibition.
Wrapping through the space and around the historic home’s fireplace, a ribbon of new display shelving guides the focus of the visitor from the front door, through the highlighted initiatives, and to the reception desk; now more focused on highlighting additional opportunities for engagement.
Envisioned as an element layered over the existing features of the house, new and old layers of information reveal themselves: the historic home, the display system, goods for sale, the story of the goods, and the initiatives tying all of the goods together.
A modular system of attachments provides for a high degree of flexibility, allowing for new print material to tell the story behind the items on display, while also providing additional opportunities for merchandising. Lining the walls, large format display boards provide flexible surfaces for graphic imagery.
Cut from sustainably sourced Baltic Birch plywood, each piece is CNC routered, allowing for a high level of detail and quality control. The core pieces feature wedge joints or friction fittings, and are free of permanent fasteners or glue. The joinery is a marriage of traditional and cutting edge woodworking. Taken as a whole, the shop displays an elevated DIY aesthetic inspired by the ethos of The Ecology Center.
Featured photos by Michelle Marie for The Ecology Center.