I admit, Apple’s latest store in New York City certainly looks regal and amazing, what with being made of so much glass and concrete, but a “temple?” Well, they’re not my words, but reading Gizmodo’s entire quote, they may be appropriate:

I call it a temple because the architecture conveys a nearly religious aesthetic, a place to worship Apple, beyond any other Apple store you’ve ever been to. The top floor’s a vast open space, enclosed by spartan stone walls which support a massive glass ceiling. The rows of tables in the main room feel like pews.

I can’t tell you – and the pictures can’t show you – how utterly open and expansive the room feels. Apple says it has more demo units than any other store in the world. To give you an idea of the space, the walls are 45 feet tall, and could fit 11 Apple 5th Avenue Cubes inside. It’s the spareness that’s breathtaking. It’s cold. Not literally, but the stone walls, the glass, the sheer space rob it of any sense of warmth or feeling. The only sense of life in room is the products. It’s a temple to them, really.

The Cult of Mac blog picked up the story from Gizmodo, and I’m picking it up from them, mostly because it’s incredibly interesting and I like how Leander honed in on that specific set of words that I think show through in some of the photos that are up at the Cult of Mac post about it.

The store looks truly remarkable from the inside out – almost too remarkable to be a simple place of retail sales. Every design aspect echoes Apple’s commitment to form AND function – the stores operate well, function well, and perform well and in addition to all of that, they look amazing – newsworthy, even. I think that’s Apple’s design philosophy with its products as well – when design and function come into play, only the best will do. Even if it costs more.

[ Cult of Mac (via Gizmodo): Apple’s Latest Store on New York’s Upper West Side Is a “Temple” ]