- Is Interior Design Architecture? -

We designed a Shisha café & bar in a newly constructed narrow building with a width of 3 meters.

In a skeleton-delivered tenant space, if the interior finishes are applied over the underlay, the space will become cramped. Typically, the skeleton of the building is finished with interior materials. However, this project attempts to architecturally integrate the building's exterior with the bare skeleton, the inserted materials, and the finishes that coexist.

This tenant has two floors. One floor is designed with a U-shaped counter where customers can face the Shisha, while the other floor welcomes groups with sofa benches and a landscape of plants.

To "showcase the smoke," the silver-painted dropped ceiling, which reflects light, makes the smoke stand out. At the same time, the walls and floors that serve as the background are subdued in color. "Discharging the smoke" is handled by a ceiling structure that functions as a hood, guiding the airflow toward the ventilation fans to address the common Shisha shop issue of insufficient ventilation, which can lead to oxygen deprivation.

The two large curved ceilings are designed at different levels with slits where the smoke is drawn in. By controlling the flow of smoke, the design not only maximizes ventilation performance but also allows customers to enjoy the movement of the smoke. How the smoke stands out is crucial. In a Shisha bar, the smoke is the main actor, and the interior space, acting as the stage that envelops it, becomes architectural finally.