Studio Lotus proposes a unique archetype for retail design with the new brand experience center for luxury jewelry label Sunita Shekhawat. The art of Meenakari, or enamel work, is an age-old technique renowned for its vibrant and intricate designs on metal surfaces. While enamel work originated in Persia, it has flourished in India, particularly in Rajasthan, where it is passed down through the generations and deeply embedded in the region’s artistic legacy. This 16th-century art serves as the foundation for the work of well-known Indian jewelry designer, Sunita Shekhawat. Her eponymous brand lends a fresh spin to the age-old tradition with timeless yet contemporary jewelry. Studio Lotus’ design for the brand’s flagship store and Museum of Meenakari in Jaipur pays homage to this approach, a nod to the region’s vibrant cultural heritage amidst a fast-evolving cosmopolitan landscape, with a jewelry store interior that seamlessly reflects this artistic legacy.

Editor’s Note: In the heart of Jaipur, the Sunita Shekhawat Flagship Store reimagines luxury with quiet grace. Its jewelry store interior is a reflection of timeless artistry, warm, intimate, and deeply rooted in tradition. Here, every detail tells a story, creating an experience that lingers far beyond the moment. ~Isha Bora

This Jewelry Store Interior Echoes the Legacy of Meenakari Art | Studio Lotus

The Existing Shell

When Studio Lotus joined the project, an existing concrete shell already stood on-site. Given complete freedom to demolish it and start fresh, the studio instead chose to retain the structure. Since the concrete had been recently cast, the architects aligned with their design philosophy of minimizing the embodied carbon footprint and worked with the existing shell.

Programmatically, the ground floor houses a museum gallery, with the store located one floor below. Also, the offices are a floor above. The second floor aims to bring in like-minded luxury brands, while the top floor. Thus, offering panoramic views of the nearby Rajmahal Palace, serves as a restaurant.

Historical Influences

Multiple historical influences of the region—Rajputana, Mughal, and Art Deco—shape the building’s identity. Thus, creating a unique composite distinct from any particular style. This new vocabulary mirrors Sunita Shekhawat’s design approach to her jewelry, which was rooted in tradition. Moreover, it crosses over seamlessly into European and other contemporary iterations.

The oddly shaped footprint externally articulates by bevelling the balconies. Subsequently, it is devising a form that intricately layers patterns and details that draw from different periods. Overall, they are woven together into one cohesive image.

Externally, a double-height entrance arch in elevation unifies the ground and first floors as a single composition. Clad in hand-carved Jodhpur red sandstone, the facade harks to Sunita’ Shekhawat’s roots in Jodhpur. While quite distinct in expression, it fits seamlessly into the pink palette synonymous with Jaipur’s urban fabric.

On the inside, the client’s three floors are unified through a striking sculptural staircase that winds through the center of the space. The original brief designated the ground floor for retail space, assigned the basement for offices and karigars’ workshops. Furthermore, they planned to let out the remaining floors.

Ground Floor: Museum Gallery

The studio suggested to the client, the idea of using the ground level as an opportunity for the Sunita Shekhawat brand to own a storytelling space on the art of enameling—a fitting way of giving back to the arts and cultural heritage of the city—through the introduction of a museum-gallery that traces the provenance and history of Meenakari craftsmanship.

This distinct addition not only serves as the fulcrum of the experience but also elevates the brand from a jewelry label to a custodian of the craft. Sidhartha Das has designed the museum experience, while Usha Balakrishnan—a foremost expert on Indian jewelry traditions—has curated the content.

First Floor: Offices and Design Studio

The first floor—a bright, daylit space crafted out of lime plaster, stone, and terrazzo—houses the client’s office and design studio. With its wide floorplate and tall ceilings, the lower ground floor lends itself well to the exclusive, by-appointment-only, bespoke nature of the business, and of the product too. The lack of natural light being conducive to the controlled lighting necessary for jewelry display.

The first experience is that of a library- cum-lounge space that further leads guests into one of four private pods. Thus, designed for one-on-one client interactions. The floor further accommodates a jewelry finishing unit, strongrooms, workshops for karigars, and ancillary spaces for accounts and sales. The planning of the retail space circulation allows for discreet, private servicing of all these pods through a service corridor that wraps itself around their external periphery, ensuring that guests have a highly personalized experience, with a sense of mystery to it.

The Pods

The pods are clad in an off-white ‘araish’ lime stucco, their semi-vaulted ceilings embellished with frescoes by artists specializing in miniature painting. Developed over several months in situ by 12 artisans, the frescoes depict vignettes of the region’s architecture and flora and fauna.

The Outcome

The outcome—a jewel-like expression of hand-crafted luxury that celebrates the brand’s ethos—is a testament to the skills of the artisans, who’ve interpreted them on an unfamiliar scale and medium; a synergistic collaboration between the architects, the client, and Nisha Vikram of CraftCanvas. The remaining surfaces are monochromatic, so as to have no distractions at eye level from the intricately-crafted jewelry on display.

The Sunita Shekhawat Flagship Store is designed to foster an environment where the act of purchasing jewelry is not the primary goal; instead, it becomes the natural conclusion of a transformative experience. The underlying emotion behind the Meenakari museum—the first of its kind—becomes the client’s way of paying homage to the city that has given her so much, while also establishing a novel paradigm in luxury retail design.

Fact File

Designed by: Studio Lotus

Project Type: Retail Design

Project Name: Museum of Meenakari Heritage & Flagship Store

Location: Jaipur, Rajasthan

Year Built: 2024

Project Size: 20360 Sq.ft

Design Team: Ambrish Arora, Pankuri Goel, Shoaib & Mubashri

Photograph Courtesy: Ishi Sitwala

Interior Contractors: Buildkraft India

Client: Sunita Shekhawat

Museum Synography: Sidhartha Das

Museum Curator: Usha Balakrishnan

Crafts: Nisha Vikram

Façade Consultants: Studio Lotus, Buildkraft India

Source: Archdaily

Firm’s Website Link: Studio Lotus

Firm’s Instagram Link: Studio Lotus

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