The most beneficial trade has become nowadays that which deals with luck. Such a relative, intangible and evanescent value has each time more and more offices, public consumption, even temples. Until a few years ago people were still thinking of opening restaurants or bringing clothes from all over the world and starting up a design boutique. Today – in Bucharest at least, but I think it is the same in many other cities – you find spaces that celebrate luck.
Not only that there are to be found more and more such gaming clubs, but it seems that people spend serious amounts here since there are premises of hundreds or thousands of square meters occupied by such projects. I suppose you are not very happy with the spring of these gaming, gambling clubs and pawnshops, but I am asking you to understand the ritual function of mediation between the destines of some and a certain secret life level where they could meet riches, happiness and luck. Design for luck, architecture for happiness. And for everything to be naturally bound, what is left between the great entertainment clubs are the pawnshops and the exchange houses. If there is someone ready to turn their necklace or mobile phone into a few game tokens, they have everything at hand, so as not to lose too much time: two steps from the gambling club to the pawnshop and then quickly back to the meeting with luck.
I do not know the extension of the project market that generates such works, but I can see there are some tendencies. I have made a personal classification of the creativity dispersed though these new forms of architectural production.
- Third place: I would give it to a pawnshop brand, it is the best window shop design of its category, and it seems to have come from abroad. At first, I was angry that I had been attracted by its shop window with some very well made details. Without noticing what it was, I came closer and then I was horrified that I had come to be in front of such a place. Usually, they look very poorly; however, this is quite a good one: a pear tree door, details designed by someone who knows one’s art, logo professionally elaborated…
- Second place: the attractive Shalimar of Obor, a mechanical gaming club, this in case the usual costumers of such a cultural institution would have read Salman Rushdie’s Shalimar the Clown, or would use Guerlain’s perfume Shalimar.
- First place: it is by far won by the entire Mo?ilor Boulevard, where we are already speaking about a commercial profile. The pawnshop – gaming club – exchange house triad is at its best, it seems we are talking about more than 25% of the whole boulevard. That is something!
