Traversing to the psychedelic plane has long been a method for artists to get the creative juices flowing. This relationship between art and cannabis—as well as architecture—is ablaze at a new dispensary in New York. The Travel Agency Soho, the fourth and newest outpost from the company, is its own sensorial trip, created through close collaborations between designers like BIGHEAVY STUDIOS, artists, glass artisans, and architecture firm Leong Leong.
The 4,151-square-foot outpost begins with an immersive entry of warped grids which completely wrap the interior. Aptly dubbed the Illusion Room, the space is covered in waving lines that produce a dizzying effect. They cover the walls, floors, and plinth in a cheeky allusion to cannabis aesthetics but the simple color scheme steers the design away from kitsch.
The loud entry gives way to its counterpart. Off-white walls and a minimalist style take over beyond the Illusion Room. Here, Leong Leong used lighting to guide visitors through the space, the same methodology the firm applied to the previous three New York locations. The design achieves a type of abstracted lighting, created with the help of TM Light. With each formal diagram of the space, the lighting specifically embeds itself within that diagram; emanating from reveals, gaps, and openings that are pushed, peeled, or pulled from the architectural surfaces and geometries of the space. The resulting lighting feels soft and ambient with a mysterious glow. Most explicitly, this happens on the ceiling where a semi-elliptical recess adds light to the store. More illuminated niches along shelving highlight cannabis products and accessories.
The soft lighting also adds to the futuristic quality to the space. Leong Leong looked to otherworldly minimalism as seen in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey and the avant-garde style of Robert Wilson’s stage designs. Curved vitrines and tubular glass cases and shiny metallic columns communicate this vision while displaying products in museum-like display boxes.
But the most museum-like element lies in the art housed in the store itself. A gallery wall features a kinetic art installation designed by Breakfast Studio. The gallery, positioned to the side of the central linear axis, highlights work that is created through real-time data, continuing the immersive quality of the store’s entry.
The Soho outpost also houses an untraditional gallery. Made to display artful bongs, this area showcases some of the functional cannabis art that has arisen as the field becomes increasingly normalized. Floating shelves, built within a recessed niche on the wall with sloping edges, elevate the glassware to high art. More concealed yet glowing lighting within the display case glows against bongs by Milan-based designer Serena Confalonieri and Mexican sculptor Juan Manuel Carmona.
“Today retail experience is more than a transaction but an intersection of hospitality, culture, and curation,” said the firm in a statement. This flagship dispensary continues this trend, interweaving art and architecture with the product in a way that’s specific to both brand and place.