Aesop Canberra

The plans for Canberra,

sketched in 1911 by Walter and Marion Mahony Griffin, outlined a garden city—in contrast to the great industrial metropolises of the nineteenth century. Located on the lands of the Ngunnawal people, two hills—protected havens of native wildlife—inform the geometric framework of the capital’s plan. The street grid is punctuated by a large number of planned gardens. In Canberra, topography and native vegetation serve not as constraints: they shape the city’s character and livability.

In principle, designing a retail environment is not so different from city planning. One must take into account the site and its surroundings, shape it in a way that will serve its intended functions, and then refine it for the benefit of its occupants. Take the fourth iteration of our store within Canberra Centre, for instance. The rectangular unit, with two façades opening onto the shopping centre’s walkways, spurred our in-house Store Design team to opt for a scenographic architecture, as the entire interior can be apprehended at a glance from the outside. The decision to rely on a single material—eucalyptus, a distinctive presence in the preserved landscape—allows the space to read as one continuous volume rather than a succession of parts.

Our store’s identity lies in an ornamental second skin of sorts: a wave of 9964 reclaimed-eucalyptus shingles, that envelop the space along its entire length, from floor to ceiling. Commonly used for roofing, this tile structure introduces a controlled irregularity—subtle variations in thickness and grain that lend the wave depth and texture. As it draws the eye along its curves, this inner shell softens the presence of the store’s functions—much as Canberra’s gardens, by preserving tracts of untouched land, save it from being all business.