I recently ran across an article on CONTEMPORIST.com, featuring the One Taste Holistic Health Club in Hangzhou, China designed by Crox International.
This space, created to cleanse and relax the mind and body uses commercial lighting strategies in new and unexpected ways. I think there’s a lot we can learn from the lighting design in this space – after all, wouldn’t you love it if your office, store, or hotel had this same inviting, rejuvenating atmosphere? I’ve picked out 5 key lighting concepts from this to share.
Let’s delve:
1. Always, always, always layer lights. In this lounge area, there are bold ceiling lights interspersed with recessed cans, shelf lighting, artistic floor lamps, and natural light from the right hand windows.
Everyone probably knows light layering is the #1 rule in residential lighting design, but we can often neglect it in professional settings. Light layers can transform that standard gloomy, fluorescent malaise into something calm and energizing.
2. Take the layers outside too! The center’s entryway functions like a beacon in the night with those stylish ceiling lights, along with cove lighting, artistic landscape lighting (those globes of light on the ground), and of course a lit sign. All the cheerful light just makes you want to walk on inside.
If your business has a storefront or entryway, don’t neglect eye-catching light layers there either. You want to draw customers in, not scare them away.
3. Use standard fixtures in unexpected ways. A regular fixture in an unexpected place will be avant-garde, without the price tag of an avant-garde light fixture. Linear light fixtures are the vanilla ice cream standard of commercial lighting, but in this projection room, the linear fixtures on the wall echo the ceiling lights, making them seem surprisingly intentional – not just the easiest way to add light to the room.
I’d also like to note those crazy recessed ceiling lights – totally echoing a standard recessed fixture only stylized and amplified. It makes you rethink the whole concept of a regular old recessed light!
Don’t be shy – think outside the box for a memorable room!
4. Display lighting should be non-negotiable. Even this center meant for tranquility and mental detox has things on display, and I totally get why. It can be stressful if you have to strain to see things meant to be seen. No matter the aesthetic of your space, display lights won’t do you wrong.
Whatever your business, whether it’s a restaurant, a university office building, or a dentist’s waiting room, you probably have things on display. But, having a shadowy display case or shelf makes it look sloppy and less-than-intentional.
5. Don’t be afraid to add color with light. There’s a lot of wood in this space, but somehow it’s not overwhelming. I’d like to argue that it’s because of the lighting. The bright ambient light keeps us from feeling like we’re trapped inside a tree trunk (even in the areas lacking windows) and the yellow cove lights add some visual interest.
I can see why many might be averse to colored light in their own commercial settings, thinking it might make their space look unprofessional, like a gaudy Vegas bar or the backend of a computer, but when done deliberately with good design sense in mind, they can perk up a bland area into something extraordinary. Try it out with some handy LED tape lights in the coves of your conference room, or under the counter at reception.