Project Name: Tiffany Facade Beijing

Location: Beijing, China

Design Team: MVRDV

Total Floor Area: 1,000 m²

Building Height: 20 m

Completion: 2025

Photography: © Tiffany & Co.

Feature: MVRDV has created a striking facade for Tiffany & Co.'s flagship store in Beijing's Taikoo-Li Sanlitun commercial district, featuring curved semi-transparent glass fins that create an ethereal, jewelry-inspired aesthetic. This design marks the fifth collaboration between MVRDV and the luxury jeweler, showcasing the firm's continued exploration of innovative materials and expressive three-dimensional forms.

The project's most exceptional design lies in its facade's array of semi-transparent, textured glass fins that sweep vertically across all four stories of the building. These locally manufactured, recycled glass elements feature gently curved edges that give the structure a fluid, sculptural quality distinctly different from conventional retail architecture. The inspiration came from jewelry designer Elsa Peretti's iconic Bone Cuff, translating the organic curves of precious accessories into architectural scale.

What sets this design apart is its sophisticated interplay with light. When viewed from an angle, the densely layered fins create a striking optical effect, with light filtering through and reflecting off the translucent surfaces in constantly shifting patterns. This dynamic quality means the facade transforms as passersby move around it, while gaps between the fins offer tantalizing glimpses of the jewelry displayed within. As MVRDV founding partner Jacob van Rijs explains: "When viewed from an angle, the layering effect of the dense glass fins amplifies the effects of the light, highlighting the facade's shape. The light filtering through and reflecting off of the translucent glass creates a delicate interplay that is constantly changing as you move. And, as you pass close to the building, you see glimpses in between the fins to the jewellery inside."

The glass was carefully selected for its natural blue tone, which becomes particularly dramatic at night when illuminated in Tiffany's signature Tiffany Blue, giving the store a diffuse glow. To ensure an elegant appearance, lighting modules are built directly into the specially designed brackets that hold the glass fins, minimizing the presence of hardware that might distract from the subtle light effects created by the glass.

Demonstrating environmental responsibility, the entire facade is designed for disassembly, allowing the glass fins and mounting brackets to be removed without damage and enabling the possibility for these components to be reused or recycled at the end of their lifespan. This approach reflects contemporary sustainable design principles while maintaining the luxury aesthetic expected of a premium jeweler's flagship location.

Design Team: MVRDV, founded in 1993 by Winy Maas, Jacob van Rijs, and Nathalie de Vries, has emerged as one of the most innovative and influential architectural practices globally. The Rotterdam-based firm now operates with offices in Shanghai, Paris, Berlin, and New York, led by its three founding partners alongside Frans de Witte, Fokke Moerel, Wenchian Shi, Jan Knikker, and Bertrand Schippan, directing a dynamic team of over 300 professionals.

MVRDV's design philosophy centers on a highly collaborative, research-based methodology that engages clients, stakeholders, and multidisciplinary experts from the earliest stages of conception. This approach yields exemplary projects characterized by technical rigor and creative innovation. The firm's in-house Climate Team ensures sustainability and resilience across all endeavors, while MVRDV NEXT develops computational workflows and emerging technologies to optimize design rationalization and project adaptability.

The practice has garnered international recognition for transformative projects spanning diverse typologies. Notable works include the Markthal in Rotterdam, combining housing and retail; Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen, the world's first publicly accessible art storage facility; and Tianjin Binhai Library. Their urban interventions, such as Seoul's Seoullo 7017 Skygarden and building transformations like the Pyramid of Tirana, demonstrate exceptional capability in reimagining urban spaces and adaptive reuse. Through The Why Factory, their collaborative think tank with Delft University of Technology, MVRDV continues to advance architectural discourse and envision future urban paradigms.

The Tiffany Facade Beijing project is led by Founding Partner-in-Charge Jacob van Rijs, coordinated by Head of Interior Aser Gimenez Ortega, with a design team including Simone Costa, Türker Naci Saylan, Monica Di Salvo, Natalia Lipczuk, Sanel Beciri, and Sofia Mermigka Angeli. The team worked in collaboration with local partners AT ZERO DESIGN LIMITED, contractor Permasteelisa Gartner Hong Kong Limited, and lighting designer Cooley Monato Studio to realize this iconic retail facade project.