Hidden in various places throughout Ginza Maison Hermès are perfect squares—some 5,000 in all! Most obvious are the glass blocks making up the building’s iconic façade, which are each 45 cm a side; four of them will form a 90-by-90 cm square, which is the same size as a Carré scarf. The floor tiles in the first-floor plaza are also 90 cm to a side, while the display shelves on the shop floor are set 90 cm apart. At every turn, the aesthetic with which architect Renzo Piano designed Ginza Maison Hermès is apparent and pleasing to the eye.

The building has seen many changes over the years—the first-floor parking area that was built as part of the initial construction (behind a section of the glass-block exterior that could slide open) is no longer in use, the rear wing was renovated and expanded between 2005 and 2006 even as the shop remained open, and each floor has seen remodels in recent years. And yet, this labyrinth of squares has been not only maintained but expanded, even as it has transformed from its original form.

Ginza Maison Hermès is often called the Magic Lantern. When the lights are turned on in the building at night, it shines brightly as every square glass block composing the façade glitters in Hermès’s signature orange—like a magical array of orange boxes.