Larger-than-life art transforms ICONLUXE into a beautiful luxury experience

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What thoughts pop in your mind when you think of ‘luxury retail therapy’ in Bangkok? Expensive handbags, new designer collections, gold jewelry? Think again, because there’s a new retail experience in town, and this time luxury is much more than the over-the-top items you’ll take home with you. Luxury, in the form of one-of-a-kind art and design, is woven into every inch of the experience at ICONSIAM.

So many superlatives

The opening of ICONSIAM last November has seen many new additions to the Bangkok scene, including Apple’s first official store and SEA’s biggest water fountain (hint: it’s best seen in the early evening just when the sun hits the horizon). Not to mention the giant wave of Instagram check-ins putting ICONSIAM on the must-be-seen map.

Now, we’re here to tell you about another one of its worlds (yes, each zone feels like a different world) that is once again exceeding all expectations.

ICONLUXE epitomizes luxury, but in a new way

ICONLUXE is ICONSIAM’s most spacious indoor zone, where you can find the world’s most prestigious brands. The cathedral-like hall features all your favorite high-end brands like Hermès, Christian Dior, Bvlgari, and Louis Vuitton. We won’t list them all but let’s just say if you name a luxury retail brand, ICONLUXE has it.

However, there’s more to ICONLUXE than meets the eyes. Look beyond the calfskin handbags and the straight-off-the-runway couture (if you can pull your gaze away). If you do, you’ll realize that the shades of silver and gold in this zone aren’t your typical interior decor, and you might just rethink what Instagram-worthy shots even mean.

A welcoming sight of golden garlands

As you enter, you’re welcomed by the Garland Chandelier hanging from the ceiling in the hallway between ICONSIAM and the ICONLUXE complex. This beautiful Thai-inspired piece of art is a welcoming symbol of prosperity and sincerity, just like real flower garlands.

A gilded ceiling made of 40,000 hand-pressed gold leaf sheets

Next, look up to the golden ceiling. This isn’t an ordinary paint job done by some dudes on ladders (no offense, dudes on ladders). ICONLUXE is a piece of art, from the ceiling to the pillars and the passion and effort of artists behind the design truly show. After all, 40,000 sheets of 15cm x 15cm gold leaves were hand-pressed by these artists at an incredible height of 20m.

The ceiling looks alive and multidimensional due to the fact that these gold leaves give the surface a bit of uneven texture and sparkle. The next time (or the first time) you visit ICONLUXE, stop, look up, and marvel that the craftsmanship that took 15 skilled artists to put it together.

Surround yourself with the work of top Thai and international artists

Hold your horses. Don’t head out to try on new kicks at JD Sports flagship store or SOOKSIAM just yet (FYI, SOOKSIAM is ICONSIAM’s reimagining of Thailand’s traditional floating market which unites some of the most modern and ancient Thai cuisines — but we’ll save that for another story!).

You’re not done with ICONLUXE just yet.

Professor Preecha Thaothong, Thailand’s national artist in painting and sculpture arts, has poured his heart and soul into the 4 ‘Light of Wisdom’ golden pillars. Reaching a height of 16m, each pillar is engraved with patterns taken straight from historical eras including Ban Chiang, Chiang Saen, Sukhothai, and Ayutthaya.

Let the pillars draw your attention upwards where a glittering sculpture by British design studio Haberdashery and Professor Preecha hangs, suspended in air. It demonstrates “stillness in maneuvers” and reflects the beauty of the Chao Phraya River.

Speaking about the collaboration, professor Preecha Thaothong said, “The collection of symbols are designed to create artistic patterns incorporating and integrating a logical form of thinking, and I’m glad to have worked with Haberdashery.”

No ordinary store design here

Just as ICONLUXE has the ambiance of a world-class art gallery, each brand has stepped up its store design. You won’t find any ordinary visual merchandising here. Bvlgari has modeled its ICONSIAM boutique store after its very first shop in Rome with its arrangement of facades and playful decor.

Another noteworthy example is Louis Vuitton, whose boutique shop embraces Thai-ness with a ceiling of local hand-woven textiles, crochet, satin, gold tinsel, and even audio cassette tapes (remember those?) to represent the riverbed of the Chaophraya River, that is only a few steps away.

Experience ICONLUXE for yourself

Don’t just read about it, go see ICONLUXE’s surreal interior design, luxe array of retail giants, and iconic art installations (it’s virtually impossible not to use the word ‘iconic’) for yourself. You can get there by a number of ways.

Take a free shuttle boat from Sathorn pier (at Saphan Taksin BTS station), drive to its parking lot which can hold up to 5,000 cars (tbh, that’s pretty impressive), or take a free shuttle bus from Krung Thonburi BTS station. Whatever way floats your boat.

March promotions at ICONLUXE

And heads up — March has something special in store for visitors. ‘ICONSIAM Luxury Fashion Trend SS 2019’ promotion features a Siam Gift Card worth THB10,000* from Monday to Friday upon spending THB50,000 (sounds hefty but that’s within a friendly price range for high-end fashion), or get Siam Gift Card worth THB5,000* on Saturday and Sunday. Find more information here.