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In the old town of Porto, Portugal, an eyewear shop with three stone arches acting as a common thread between the rooms: this is Optocentro, a retail project curated by Guimaraes architects.

The first arch, a welcoming green Guatemala marble surface, invites you to enter the space. When gently merged with the interior, the visitor anticipates the second arch, located at the end of the exhibition space, in a pale green shade in daylight or vibrant but diffused color at night, changing the actual temperature and eluding the observer’s perception. The third inverted arch at the upper floor, at the end of the private consultation offices, doubles as a viewpoint to the street or, when perceived by the user, an invitation to explore when entering the store. A stainless-steel ceiling becomes a big inverted mirror, inviting the user to examine different perspectives of the real. The tectonic exploration of the blue-ataíja limestone is the unifying “canvas” of the entire project.