lemaire’s first boutique in china by F.O.G. architecture fuses tranquility with cultural heritage

F.O.G. architecture sculpts Lemaire’s first boutique in china

In Chengdu’s Taikoo Li district, just steps from the Fountain Plaza, F.O.G. Architecture completes a serene boutique for Paris-based label Lemaire, marking the clothing brand’s first permanent store in China. Departing from storefront maximalism, the 140-square-meter space retreats quietly into its site, using a recessed facade and a ritualistic entry sequence to draw visitors into a spatial experience that reflects the philosophy of Lemaire.

Anchored by a unique ‘one step up, one step down’ circulation design, the boutique’s entrance introduces a buffer zone, where a landscaped interstice mirrors the under-eaves spaces of traditional Chinese architecture. This transitional moment sets the tone for the entire spatial narrative. The entry’s movable potted plants, placed in traditional local ‘sauce jars,’ speak to a grounded sense of Chengdu daily life and subtly reinterpret the domestic habit of indoor urban greenery.

all images by Wen Studio

bamboo and Moroccan Bejmat tiles take central stage

Materiality becomes the key storyteller at the Chinese Lemaire boutique, as multidisciplinary design studio F.O.G. Architecture orchestrates a dialogue between the ‘tangible’ and ‘intangible,’ with local bamboo taking center stage. From bamboo floors and curtains to stone textures evoking the woven tactility of bamboo, the palette balances honesty and abstraction. Echoing this approach, traditional Sichuan crafts, such as Yi-made Cha’erwa wool shawls repurposed as curtain panels and delicately woven Cizhu bamboo door handles’ form part of a collaborative design process between architects, artists, and regional artisans, ensuring contextual authenticity and alignment with the brand’s visual language.

The coexistence of local tradition and global aesthetics continues within. Moroccan Bejmat tiles, a signature Lemaire material, reference the greyscale tones of Chinese masonry, while construction details borrow from local architectural memory. Baseboards inspired by the wooden thresholds of the historic Du Fu Cao Tang are reimagined as soft transitions between surfaces. Even the overhead lintel becomes a functional design feature, doubling as a rail for displaying garments.

F.O.G. Architecture completes a serene boutique for Paris-based label Lemaire