YME Universe concept store in Oslo, Norway Shop Interior Images, Karl Johans gate Architecture

YME Universe Concept Store

Shop Interior at Karl Johans gate 39, Oslo, Norway – design by Snohetta

27 Nov 2014

YME Universe Concept Store in Oslo

Location: Oslo, Norway

Design: Snøhetta, architects

YME is located between the Royal Palace and the Parliament in Karl Johans gate 39, in a beautiful and historic building from 1844 previously described as a “Paris in miniature”. YME is inspired by stores such as Colette in Paris, Corso Como in Milan, and Dover Street Market in London, and it is a curated universe of fashion, art, interior, and design.

The store’s design and interior created by YME Studios in collaboration with Snøettta features an art gallery, a bookstore, a café, and a future roof garden. Art exhibitions are frequently found alongside the merchandise, as are signings, launches, in-store appearances, and fashionable happenings.

Through a six month long process, YME Studios and Snøhetta have collaborated on the design of fixed elements, infrastructure, lighting, material choice, and the important spatial concepts creating the frames of the YME Universe. The ambition was to create a universe based on the saga about YME that would take Oslo and Norway out to the rest of the world.

Different expressions meet on a variety of platforms in a gathered yet schizophrenic expression. Ideas are manifested in physical objects based on the Norse story of creation, where YME was created out of Fire from Muspelheim and Ice from Niflheim, and where Odin, Vilje, and Ve in the end had to kill YME for the world to be created.