Engineering Precision Beneath an Effortless Form
For the Louis Vuitton flagship stores on New Bond Street and Grafton Street, Foster + Partners envisioned a roofscape that reads less like architecture and more like an object of haute craftsmanship — a luminous sixth-storey crown, likened to a Fabergé egg resting lightly above the city.
Behind this apparent simplicity lies extraordinary complexity.
The bespoke metal shingle roof was conceived and delivered through a fully parametric design and manufacturing process, developed in close collaboration with the architects and builders (All Metal Roofing London). Using Grasshopper and Rhino, the roof geometry was digitally modelled as a continuous, doubly curved surface, demanding absolute precision in both pattern logic and fabrication tolerances.
Each shingle is unique, yet the visual intent was to achieve the opposite: a calm, regular, almost geometric rhythm that disguises the underlying variation. This is the true technical challenge — making the complex appear effortless.
The parametric model controlled every variable: shingle dimensions, curvature, fixings, overlaps and tolerances, ensuring each piece responded precisely to its position on the roof while maintaining visual consistency across the whole surface.
From street level, the roof reads as a singular sculptural form — refined, calm and luxurious. Up close, it reveals a choreography of precision engineering, digital craftsmanship and material mastery. It is a reminder that true luxury in architecture often lies not in what is seen, but in the intelligence and effort required to make complexity disappear.
For the Louis Vuitton flagship stores on New Bond Street and Grafton Street, Foster + Partners envisioned a roofscape that reads less like architecture and more like an object of haute craftsmanship — a luminous sixth-storey crown, likened to a Fabergé egg resting lightly above the city.
Behind this apparent simplicity lies extraordinary complexity.
The bespoke metal shingle roof was conceived and delivered through a fully parametric design and manufacturing process, developed in close collaboration with the architects and builders (All Metal Roofing London). Using Grasshopper and Rhino, the roof geometry was digitally modelled as a continuous, doubly curved surface, demanding absolute precision in both pattern logic and fabrication tolerances.
Each shingle is unique, yet the visual intent was to achieve the opposite: a calm, regular, almost geometric rhythm that disguises the underlying variation. This is the true technical challenge — making the complex appear effortless.
The parametric model controlled every variable: shingle dimensions, curvature, fixings, overlaps and tolerances, ensuring each piece responded precisely to its position on the roof while maintaining visual consistency across the whole surface.
From street level, the roof reads as a singular sculptural form — refined, calm and luxurious. Up close, it reveals a choreography of precision engineering, digital craftsmanship and material mastery. It is a reminder that true luxury in architecture often lies not in what is seen, but in the intelligence and effort required to make complexity disappear.
