Self-Portrait’s Mayfair outpost is a Cornish clay and aluminium marvel

When Han Chong was studying fashion design at London’s Central Saint Martins, he liked nothing better than perusing the luxury shops in Mayfair. Now, just five years after launching his cost-effective occasion-wear label Self-Portrait, the Malaysian-born talent has opened his first outpost on Albemarle Street in Mayfair, no less. ‘I wanted to offer that luxury shopping experience, but at our price point,’ says the designer. ‘Albemarle Street is perfect, because it has a sophisticated feel, but also an edge.’
Self-Portrait founder Han Chong at his brand's Albemarle Street outpost.
Having studied art before he ventured into fashion, Chong hoped to ‘exceed the expectations of a normal retail store, fusing art and architecture.’ To do this, he enlisted Casper Mueller Kneer Architects, the force behind acclaimed projects including the White Cube Gallery Bermondsey, the ICA London and the Céline boutiques. Spanning 223 sq m, the two-storey space takes inspiration from the brand’s focus on surface detail and tactility, and comprises a terrazzo floor with pink and white marble insets, an open grid ceiling that creates a continuous horizon, and walls coated with a smooth grey Cornish mineral clay.
‘It was important for us to create a number of different places that the customer could explore,’ explains architect Olaf Kneer. ‘So there’s a sequence of spaces flowing into each other, creating zones with different spatial and material qualities.’ Upstairs, curved metal screens give a playful sense of structure to the simple, open space. While on the ground floor, Chong and Kneer used stacked geometric columns and angular walls to create intimate alcoves and compartments, such as a secluded shoe stand and a marble seating area. Not to mention the semi-circular metal screens with coloured aluminium inlays, which proudly display the label’s trademark evening dresses, while also providing what Kneer describes as ‘visual shelter.’
In order to achieve the level of detail, accuracy and ingenuity desired, every single element of the store was custom made – even the furniture, which was crafted in collaboration with artist Michael Elmgreen. ‘That was probably our biggest challenge,’ reflects Kneer. ‘We even designed the terrazzo and marble inlay pattern of the floor, and worked with a highly specialised fabricator to control every step of the sampling, fabrication and installation very precisely.’
Needless to say, their efforts have paid off. ‘Every part of the store is true to the brand,’ enthuses Chong. ‘It’s a place where customers can experience our clothes and the dynamics of the architecture – the Self-Portrait world.’
The boutique has been designed by Casper Mueller Kneer Architects and features a terrazzo floor with marble inserts, semi-circular metal screens and stacked geometric columns
The walls of the boutique are coated with a smooth grey Cornish mineral clay and its ceiling features an open grid system
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Self-Portrait website
ADDRESS
Self-Portrait
49 Albemarle St
Mayfair
London
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
Naoto Fukasawa sparks children’s imaginations with play sculptures
The Japanese designer creates an intuitive series of bold play sculptures, designed to spark children’s desire to play without thinking
By Danielle Demetriou
-
Japan in Milan! See the highlights of Japanese design at Milan Design Week 2025
At Milan Design Week 2025 Japanese craftsmanship was a front runner with an array of projects in the spotlight. Here are some of our highlights
By Danielle Demetriou
-
Tour the best contemporary tea houses around the world
Celebrate the world’s most unique tea houses, from Melbourne to Stockholm, with a new book by Wallpaper’s Léa Teuscher
By Léa Teuscher
-
AlphaTauri’s Salzburg HQ is a science fiction fantasy
Browse in-store, buy online: the future-focused mentality of AlphaTauri
By Simon Mills
-
Water inspires Holzweiler’s Snøhetta-designed Oslo flagship
Holzweiler Platz, the new retail destination of fashion brand Holzweiler in Oslo, is designed by architects Snøhetta as a naturalistic space that unites fashion, art and food
By Laura Hawkins
-
Manu Atelier's first boutique nods to Le Corbusier in Istanbul
The cult Istanbul-based label introduces bold, sculptural expressionism into this first bricks and mortar store
By Laura Hawkins
-
Louis Vuitton's Ginza Namiki flagship evokes a rippling pillar of water
Japanese architect Jun Aoki creates a water-like facade for Louis Vuitton's Ginza Namiki Tokyo flagship
By Danielle Demetriou
-
Alternative retail websites for fashionable festive gifting
Look to luxury etailers Rêve En Vert, APOC Store and Doda the Store, Aspect and Zero-Living for feel-good gifting options that support emerging creatives and artists, and have a sustainability-focused mindset
By Laura Hawkins
-
Aspesi’s upcycled shirt is a winter wardrobe staple
The Italian brand's Shirt-Jacket 13 silhouette is well padded with eco-credentials
By Laura Hawkins
-
David Chipperfield designs Furla's new flagship in Milan's historic Piazza Duomo
Gio Ponti, Vico Magistretti and Achille Castiglione inspire the brand's newest Milan boutique
By Laura Hawkins
-
Morocco-based Marrakshi Life combines traditional techniques with a New York aesthetic
Clothing brand Marrakshi Life champions a unisex, hand-tailored line
By Grace Cook