SPACE+CRAFT OPENS A NEW DOOR TO REDISCOVER THE ANCIENT CITY OF AYUTTHAYA AND SHAKES OFF THE PRECONCEIVED IMAGE OF THE SHOPHOUSE IN THIS LATEST DESIGN
TEXT: JANJITRA HORWONGSAKUL
PHOTO: THANAPOL JONGSIRIPIPAT
(For Thai, press here)
The Summer House in Ayutthaya, is a coffee roaster and restaurant designed by Space+Craft and the company has been once again commissioned to design a new space for the brand. Named The Summer Coffee Company Old Town, the project is a café, coffee roasting factory and the brand’s main bakery studio. While the location is relatively near Wat Mahathat like its predecessor, the new space reflects Ayutthaya from a different angle while simultaneously shaking off the original and preconceived image of the shophouse where the project is sited.
The advantages of taking up the corner unit is the additional space on the side. The two units of four-storey shophouse plus the extra outdoor space means the functional spaces are sufficient for the new program. The four-meter high white walls surround the entire area. Each of the three different courtyards in the interior space contains a different color theme, size and ambiance. The airy white court that is home to Fagraea fragrans tree with white gravel-covered ground is located towards the front, that leads users to the interior of the café. The semi-outdoor court with a skylight roof houses a dining area while the orange court, which runs along the long side of the land, with the use of orange paving blocks for the ground accommodates a series of layouts of the outdoor dining area. Three growing trees complete the overall vibe, filtering the sun and providing beautiful shady areas, keeping the space cooler and more pleasant than the other two courts.
The image of the old city of ancient red brick structures is what most people have in mind when they think of Ayutthaya. Noppachai Akayapisud, Design Director of Space+Craft, told art4d how he intended to incorporate the feel of the material into the design of the café. He, however, tried to avoid the use of real red bricks as an attempt to avoid redundancy. One side of the walls of the orange court is built using perforated round bricks whose color is mixed and customized to give the desired shape. The bricks’ random arrangement and texture created by scrap materials makes the surface more dimensional and interesting.
With the limitations that come with the renovation of old shophouses, certain traces of the original structures remain as a part of the new space, from columns to beams (which had been stripped off to expose the actual structural details). Most of the walls and floor of the mezzanine were demolished and some were replaced by glass openings to welcome natural light into the interior, making the café more spacious. The seating area is designed to have different variations, with graphic patterns and colors by Teaspoon Studio added to keep the overall atmosphere lively, representing the identity of the Summer House brand.
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The connection between the courtyard and the café area coupled with the thoughtfully curated positioning of the functional spaces creates a one-way yet highly dynamic spatial hierarchy that flows nicely while also delivering the required commercial appeal. “It’s undeniable that most café hoppers go to these establishments primarily because of the space. In addition to the aesthetically pleasing and meticulously designed architecture, creating a space that caters to the potential clientele and meets business needs is just as crucial for business owners.” The same story goes with The Summer Coffee Company Old Town. Noppachai emphasized that creating a new context within an old space or structure, be it the attempt to make shophouses look like a space that wouldn’t remind people of shophouses, adding courtyards to the interior space of two shophouse units, which sounded like an impossible idea at first, or encapsulating the Ayutthaya spirit without the use of red bricks. These are all strategic developments and well thought out execution of ideas in organizing a space, that ends up opening a new door to new possibilities while allowing the old and the original to be rediscovered and reinterpreted in such a refreshing and meaningful way.
