Architecture in the Store Structure

Architecture in the Store Structure

As I walk through University Towne Centre Mall, I notice tucked away in a somewhat secluded part of the mall the store Structure. Structure is a men's clothing and accessory store. Hanging in the large glass windows of the store are colored posters of handsome men dressed from head to toe in the latest Structure fashions. Structure has adopted the Greek Ionic Column as part of it's building plan. Painted on the front windows of the store are small silhouette images of an idealized Greek temple. The Greek architectural elements that have been used to decorate and symbolize Structure, are in perfect condition. In fact, one could even go far enough to imagine that they were standing in Athens thousands of years ago when the temples were first erected. The designers of this store have done a very clever thing in making Greek architecture part of their image. Incorporating a building style that has endured for so long into their design portrays an image that their products should do the same. This is a great selling point and hopefully one that their employees utilize.

As you enter Structure at University Towne Centre Mall, you pass between two, gleaming white columns that have been polished to perfection. Structure has chosen for it's main point of interest, the Ionic column. Characteristic of the Ionic column is the scrolled volute which rests on top of the fluted column. There are three different styles of Greek columns that make up the Greek Architectural Orders. These are the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian. These orders all consist of a column and a different style capital which is the highest part of the column. These monumental structures were built to withstand any harsh treatment for th...

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...hare the same design principle as Structure. Most of the storefronts are very plain with large glass windows displaying meticulously detailed arrangements which advertise that stores' products. Stores that adopt this type of plan are not doing anything out of the ordinary by setting up their goods in a fashionable way. What they are doing is mimicking every other store in the mall and this can get very tiresome. No wonder people get so fatigued after just a few hours at the mall, they are surrounded by dull, unexciting architecture. Needless to say, Structure utilizes and perpetuates an architectural style that has stood the test of time. The consumer who walks by this store, bored and exhausted will raise a curious eye when they see Structure. Perhaps they will not notice the clothes hanging in the window and will venture inside to see what the store is all about.