Situated on a prominent corner of the Ginza shopping district, this retail façade is clad in a panelized aluminum skin, featuring a foamed aluminum exterior texture with a running bond brick pattern. What upon first glance appears to be brickwork is actually a unique pewter-like specular surface composed of brick-sized foamed aluminum elements aggregated on large aluminum panels.

The foamed aluminum was pre-fabricated on the large panels, allowing installation in a rain screen configuration. Front’s scope included developing the system details, pre-fabrication approach, and evaluating the stability and durability of the foamed aluminum material used.