Whats the relation of the store to the Guggenheim Museum itself?
REM: In general you could say that museums have gravitated toward the commercial domain. So we want to make a Prada store in Soho that is still a store, but that can contract all its commercial elements into a single point and liberate the rest of the space for public events. It’s startling how saturated with commercial space Soho is now. We thought that one unique thing Prada could offer is a degree of generosity toward the public that there doesn’t always have to be heavy-handed commercial presence. At the same time, the Guggenheim is devising a design collection that doubles as a store. You’ll be able to click on anything and have it delivered, even if it’s a car. JEN: So the Guggenheim has plugged into your idea of “MoMA Inc.” REM: MoMA Inc. itself has plugged into “MoMA Inc.” They appointed a director of branding three weeks after the competition and are now discussing a system of stand-alone stores and a dotcom in collaboration with the Tate. It was an inevitable development. Act
