My first sketch to show my preliminary idea, which is mainly about having a castle on top of a building.
Modifying a portal which opens the gate to the magical worlds.
Getting elements from castle towers, and form the design language for the building. Removing the castle from the roof leaving just the two towers will make the building simpler, and also create a useful Meet & Greet area.
I converted the moat into the planters by the sides of the entrance, and created a frame to signify a portal to the magical worlds. That can be seen from some castles where you will have a big portal at the bridge across the moat.
The facade profile of the building comes from the two side towers above, and I only extracted the cut-corner shape. This slightly chamfered entrance also helps the portal stand out better.The first shop along the main street of V City is a small one with a big name. The new Disney Store offers different products of its several franchises, including PIXAR and Star Wars.
The client (of course I am making this up) wants a small modern building, but contains some essence of its brand. Undoubtedly the castle becomes the starting point for my design brainstorming session. My initial idea is a little box with a castle, and I began to break down the important elements from the castle to form the design language.
I converted the moat into the planters by the sides of the entrance, and created a frame to signify a portal to the magical worlds. That can be seen from some castles where you will have a big portal at the bridge across the moat.
The facade profile of the building comes from the two side towers above, and I only extracted the cut-corner shape. This slightly chamfered entrance also helps the portal stand out better.
The building interior is simple, and is divided into several themes. First it is the Star Wars zone, where guests can find a lot of Star Wars toy and apparels. You can also design your own lightsaber at the “Build Your Own Lightsaber” shelf, and I made reference from the existing shops in Disneyland.
Another side is the traditional Disney products, from traditional Disney stories. You can find girl items and dolls (you may ask about teddy bear, and yes Disney has one called Duffy and Shelliemay!), and also some cups and bottles. The deco is simple with wood planks, with the famous clock of Cinderella.
Up the stairs will be 1/F, where you are greeted by the Toy Story shelf and the Lightyear figure. You can try the 3-eye Alien headpiece! Turning around is the much anticipated Frozen shelf, with all the icy items you can purchase! See that girl who is in love with the Snowgie cushions? You can also meet Elsa, Anna and Olaf and take pictures with them! Then you will see the little food corner, facing the staircase to the roof top.
The roof is a little green playground for kids, and you can meet the two iconic characters of Disney, Mickey and Minnie! Kids are queuing up to take great pictures with them, and later you will see even more other characters around the year. While I can design a simple hinged door on the rooftop, I created this version so that the panel can be folded up once more to avoid visual intrusion (if it is one big panel, it will stand up and be seen behind the tower on the front elevation! Not good!)
Meet & Greet with Mickey and Minnie! Kids queue up now!
With the whole Disney characters!
