What is it about ceilings that make it unlovable sometimes when it takes up so much visual field in a design? Why is it that the design of a ceiling remains in the “functional” category or an afterthought? For lighting designers, the ceiling is typically received the most attention, and in some cases the most lighting equipment, in addition to mechanical services, devices, quintessentially un-beautiful exit signs. Surely it can be more than just a flat or technical surface. Like Louis Kahn asking “What does the brick want to be”…why can’t we ask “what can a ceiling become?”
SEAM was tasked with providing a lighting scheme for the new head office for a retail development company in London. The interior design fashioning itself after office typologies as We Work, Soho Works and others setting a new trend in office space, the design called for a multi-functional reception lobby to be seen as a serious but un-stuffy corporation and leader in the retail industry.
Following a deep dive into what the lobby could be, inspiration was drawn from fashion houses with fabric detailing that can rival progressive architectural forms. As architectural designers and lighting designers, we did not limit ourselves to design just lighting system alone, we undertook the ceiling design as well. This is a simple example where Beauty can follow Function, where the ceiling is the expressive hero of the space.