The leading authority for the Architecture & Design community
October 26, 2018
Text: Jesse Dorris
Canoma’s Communal Salon in Tokyo Embodies Its Design Philosophy
The so-called “sharing economy” isn’t just changing the way people work—it’s also transforming the spaces they work in. That’s what Tokyo-based firm Canoma proposes with Shaire Salon, located the city’s Harajuku district.
Stylists can rent any of the dozen booths that chief designer Shinsuke Yokoyama carved out of 1,800 square-foot raw space. “I wanted to reproduce the experience of narrow streets in an old town,” Yokoyama says, “the sense of entering consecutive stores.” High-precision wooden partitions form clear boundaries, unified by expanses of both clear and opaque glass that create privacy while allowing the salon’s ample natural light to fill every area. The plaster walls are finished in a gloss designed to reflect that light, joined by smooth stone flooring used everywhere in the salon apart from the shampoo room, which utilizes vinyl in a concrete pattern.
Yokoyoma calls it “a simple design,” unified by repetitions of material changed only in scale—a lesson in less-is-more that, much like the salon, is worth sharing.
Other cut booths, like Happiness, contain custom freestanding mirrors made from steel bar. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.In a corridor, solid beach Traevarefabrikernes stools pull up to custom oak plywood tables. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.A hinged sold white ash door introduces a lounge, with oak plywood lockers for customers to the left. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.The shampoo room includes custom basswood plywood storage, and chairs and sinks by Takara Belmont. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.Cut spaces are arranged to resemble storefronts on the street. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.Cut boots, including this one named Freedom, offer seating from Beauty Garage, custom integrated mirrored shelving, and sconces from Odelic. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.White glass and brass sconces from Bolts Hardware Store define a waiting area. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.Plywood frames and lustrous stone flooring create individual studios for the freelance stylists. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.At reception, an oak plywood shelf hangs below a brass logo; the wall boasts a plaster finish. Photography by Tomooki Kengaku.
