MoMa Design Store, New York

MoMa’s iconic Design Store has undergone a crisp and airy rejuvenation as part of the Museum’s recent $400m overhaul, a reworking that has seen the store shifted to a new semi-subterranean setting to make way for new museum display space.

With the aim being to better showcase the store’s unique pieces, the refreshed design opens up the space with a gallery-esque layout that lends itself to increased circulation and exploration. Natural light has been maximised via ceiling cut-outs that allow visitors to peer into the space from street-level or from MoMa’s lobby, while a neutral grey and white colour scheme shifts attention to the items on display.

Lumsden Design’s crisp, understated approach has elevated the newly below-ground MoMa Design Store.

A sound system from Teenage Engineering makes waves of the audio kind in the new tech area, which allows dramatic emphasis on the store’s star product attractions – each of which has been given the nod by MoMa’s curators. A wall of shelving with integrated lighting casts the products in bold visual splendour, while allowing flexibility in how they’re displayed. Panelled maple looms overhead and in a and as a backdrop in a section for seasonal products, while a bespoke glass display case highlights exclusive jewellery pieces and objets d’art.

Following the directive of the larger MoMa redesign, the Design Store’s new look isn’t about dramatic aesthetic revolution, but rather a restrained, pragmatic update that reflects the Museum’s mission of making great design accessible to all. And it’s a refreshing offering in a sector that tends towards the traditional.