PIA Award Winner : Most Beautiful Use of SSL, 2019
Part of a new breed of workspaces where the lines between residential and commercial are blurred, the vision for 151 West 42nd St. was to redesign the space into a 45,600-sq.-ft. artisanal food hall, cafe; bar and flexible events space designed to create community within the building where its tenants could work, play and thrive with a signature experience elevated by the subtleties of human-centric lighting and design.
USAI Color Select tunable white LED technology’s ability to mimic the sun’s natural light allowed designers to curate highly personalized light scenes. Each of the light scenes aimed to trigger emotional responses that aligned with the daily activities taking place in the amenity space: early morning set up is set to a light orange to emulate the sunrise; lunch is set to an energizing sky blue light; happy hours are set to a warmer tone with rich magenta; and the final setting, lounge, creates a warm, seemingly candlelit ambiance.
To further integrate the iconic Gehry structures, the Loop Lighting design team illuminated its curves with an indirect strategy. Using BeveLED Mini Color Select LED adjustable downlight’s varying beam distributions aimed on the white table top surfaces and the White American Oak floors, Loop Lighting team was able to introduce a soft uniform and indirect light level that gently illuminates all of the curves in the irregular form—bringing the structures to life.
Judges' Comments: “Color tuning is clearly the wave of the future, but not all are ready to storm the beachhead. Graceful field applications greatly help.”
