LIGHT CREATES SANCTUARY

Blinds and Lighting

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Canadian Fairytale

Interior architects Jeffrey Beers International has created a sophisticated interiors scheme for the Fairmont Springs Resort in Banff, Canada, using warm metallics and natural stone highlights for the lighting.

Nestled in the foothills of Banff in Canada, the Fairmont Springs Resort is a fairytale destination. New York-based interior architects Jeffrey Beers International was brought on board to design the Fairmont Gold, privately located on the 4th and 5th floors of the main building, offering guests exclusive services and amenities. Speaking with Project Manager Pierre Josselin, darc finds out more about their design approach.

“JBI worked on a few Fairmont properties, so Fairmont introduced us to the ownership group, Oxford properties, who engaged us for the renovation of the Gold rooms and Suites, and the Crown Suite,” says

Jossein. “We were tasked to come up with a design, which respected the Mountain Grandeur of the property. The project started in early 2019, and of course went on hold for a short period of time with Covid, before being completed in early 2021. Some areas are still being finalised as we speak.”

The brief didn’t change over the course of the project, however, maintaining the client’s desires for the spaces brought with it some challenges for the team. Josselin elaborates: “How to come up with an incredible design but stay within budget is always challenging. Partnering with the right vendors is key. Also, this property, being a castle, has many room types. We almost had to document every single room, being super organised and clear in our deliverables was essential.”

Another challenge that came with the project was access to the spaces ahead of installation. “We couldn’t survey all the suites and some ceilings came lower than anticipated so some adjustments had to be made to the ceiling fixtures in living rooms.”

For the Gold Guestrooms, JBI created custom lamps creating a mix of table, floor and ceiling lamps with finishes that reflect the mountainous grandeur that inspired their interiors. Rock crystal, metals and leather materials were used to emphasise this aesthetic. “We partnered with Scott Lamp for this project. Reading lights with a nice Kurl detailing were from Chelsom, magnifying mirrors with slim profiles were from Astro Lighting, and custom lit-up mirrors were from MunnWork. For the Suites, we used additional off-the-shelf products from Visual Comfort.”

Both the guestrooms and the suites carried a residential quality to them. Architectural lighting was only used in the entryway and bathrooms, whereas decorative lighting set at 2700K created a warm environment throughout.

“Lighting is paramount: it makes or breaks the design. Any beautiful design is ruined if the lighting is not well-balanced.

“[The project] came out exactly as envisioned. The design fully embraces and celebrates the location without overpowering it. It feels luxurious but not overwhelming. The red accent makes it bold and memorable. It hits the right balance where the guest wants to come back time after time,” reflects Josselin.

“The main inspiration came from the property itself and how one is in awe upon arrival. You can’t help but fall in love immediately, not only with the hotel but the surrounding areas and the overall region of Banff National Park. The fairytale appeal inspired the design by celebrating the ‘romance’ in the guestrooms and having a ‘crush’ in the suites. It’s a modern version of the founder’s visions, keeping the beauty of the Canadian mountainside in mind. The décor is elevated, warm and comfortable, but not intimidating, with a mix of free-standing furniture pieces and natural materials to give a residential feel. The guests arrive at their home in the mountain, a cosy sanctuary where they will be at ease and feel the love.” www.jeffreybeers.com

Design Details

Fairmont Springs Resort, Banff, Canada

Interior Architect: Jeffrey Beers International

Lighting Specified: Astro Lighting, Chelsom, Scott Lamp, MunnWorks, Visual Comfort.

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Specialists in the design & manufacture of unique, timeless lighting.

Western Australia’s New Hot Spot

The Claremont Hotel in Perth, Western Australia, was recently redeveloped by interior architects Fratelle and lighting consultants ambience. Opening in January, the new hospitality venue aimed to be a landmark pub for locals, which included a bistro, bar and courtyard for indoor and outdoor dining, function spaces, and a rooftop bar; an all-encompassing assembly of venues within the single location. Speaking with darc, ambience’s Senior Architectural Lighting Designer Gemma Noé Pereira discusses the team’s lighting brief and execution. “Critically, the client entrusted us with a lot of freedom,” says Pereira. “We created our own brief around a venue where you can spend all day and night but experience many different vibes.

“The client was proposing a complete rebuild of the venue. It was going to be an iconic new destination in WA, with its size and scale on par with Melbourne’s Espy (another iconic hotel they have recently acquired), and the lighting design was key to the success of the interior space from the beginning.”

One of the key areas the ambience team focussed on was the main void and staircase. It was also important to ensure that there was a warm feel downstairs and a fresh and bright environment upstairs. “Our design intent was to create a series of unique spaces through lighting,” says Pereira. “Even in the open plan spaces where there are multiple seating areas, we distinguished them all with a unique light strategy for each one. These are all linked together through the use of consistent technology (Bluetooth Casambi controls) and colour temperatures. A myriad of custom lights by Symphony and local fabricators were specially designed and created for this project as well.”

For the ground floor, to achieve the desired warm atmosphere, ambience used a selection of recessed downlights and surfacemounted adjustable spotlights that were suitable for the various types of mounts (i.e., heritage walls and new plasterboard ceilings). For the majority of these fixtures, narrow beam angles were used to

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87–135 Brompton Road, Knightsbridge 02077301234 EXT. 3370 | london-ha@uk.lladro.com accentuate the key elements and create a sense of drama. “We utilised neon flex LED strips to highlight the curved architectural details such as the main central bar ceiling, the front bar, and the gantry,” explains Pereira. “Different decorative lights have been used for each of the areas to stand out individually and create different vibes. Spike lights and deck lights were used to highlight the trees and greenery in order to create a natural environment.

“We allowed for all the fittings to be dimmable, providing the option to set a subtle and low-level illumination in the different areas (main sitting area, lounge, bistro, amenities, etc.) and with regards to the colour temperature, all the fittings are set at a warm white 2700K.” In the main sitting area, a custom decorative installation of suspended rings by Symphony x andro was installed. Flexible strip lighting is mounted to the top of each ring to softly illuminate the details of the heritage ceiling above.

On the first floor, a similar approach to the ground floor was adopted to create a common “architectural language”. However, the design intention was to be a fresh and bright space in comparison to the lower level. As such, ambience used wide beam angles for the ceiling fixtures to create a more uniform illumination.

For the bistro, the team wanted to create a special environment, so they proposed silver cap LED Edison light globes with black porcelain lamp holders by Vintage LED. “In the lounge, recessed downlights were used in the ceiling and timeless Bright Beads Disc by Marz Designs are mounted to the timber panelling, which makes the space look stunning,” Pereira adds.

Furthermore, the team wanted to create Instagrammable moments in the bathrooms using LED strips around the mirrors and on the top of each WC divider as uplighting.

In the stairwell, Karman’s Moby Dick pendants were used in a cluster above the landing. “This is one of the hero features, which is very visible from the various areas on the ground floor and from the main entry,” says Pereira. “This cluster was a very important element we envisioned from the start of the project.”

On the first-floor balcony, multiple clusters of Perene pendants by Symphony in two different sizes were featured. In the function room, small, recessed e-Lite Olio downlights were integrated along with various bespoke surface mount spheres and Galileo Wall Light by Il Fanale. Sual wall lights by Aromas were placed in the entry to the function space and Ginger wall lights by Joan Gasparwas fitted on the first floor balcony exterior wall.

On the first-floor outdoor bar, frosted LEDs with black porcelain lamp holders were installed. These fixtures from Vintage LED were chosen to draw the attention of passers-by on the street below, enticing them to enter the venue.

Working within a historic venue brought with it some challenges for the ambience team. “We had to design our custom lights to fit the existing conditions of the building,” says Pereira.

“We also had the challenges of designing all of this remotely during the Covid pandemic.

“Designing the custom suspended rings located in the main seating areas was a real challenge given that we had to maintain the original heritage ceiling untouched. The weight of the rings had to be balanced out, and we had to calculate the exact number and position of the suspensions all while making them look good with the historic ceiling. Our colleague Nikita Kalia helped with this.” www.ambiencelighting.co.uk

Overall, the project has been hailed a success by all at ambience, with the venue welcoming a booming trade into its space. “We’ve had great feedback and the venue is killing it”, concludes Pereira.

Design Details

Claremont Hotel, Perth, Australia

Interior Design: Fratelle

Lighting Designer: Ambience

Lighting Specified: Aromas, Il Fanale, Joan Gaspar, Karman, Mark Douglass, Marz Designs

Images: Traianos Pakioufakis

Working within a historic building brought with it some inherent challenges, however this also forced the lighting team at ambience to design a scheme that worked beautifully in its environment. Using a selection of decorative lighting pieces, some bespoke to the project, the Claremont Hotel is now a welcoming, buzzing hospitality venue for locals to enjoy.

We have several hospitality projects on the board right now, where the requirement is both to design ‘change’ into an environment to ensure continual excitement and newness, while combining this with a strong sustainability story. We’re particularly looking for products to help us resolve this potential tension.

In a post-Covid world, where people are experiencing a costof-living crisis, hospitality environments certainly need to work harder than ever. Clients are asking for experience-led spaces that offer an ‘Insta-worthy’ aesthetic and sensual stimulation for guests to help create lasting memories. On the other hand, the requirement to provide sustainable solutions is increasing, with raised expectations from both guests and clients meaning we’re conscious that ‘newness’ shouldn’t be wasteful.

Updated menu offerings, seasonal changes and day-to-night flexibility all help hospitality environments attain that hardworking environment - and lighting in particular is a clear way to help achieve this. We love the portable version of Space Copenhagen’s Seine Table Lamp at Gubi right now [1]. Inspired by the behaviour of light and water, it features a mouth-blown, sandblasted glass shade with a sandblasted finish, supplied with a USB-C docking station, with the lamp charging to full in eight hours.

On a larger scale, the llll light [2] is an elegant and sculptural feature pendant utilising DALI technology to adjust colour temperature subtly in line with circadian rhythms. We love that the focus isn’t on its tech here and is instead inspired by nature in its purest form.

Artwork is a great way to transform an interior and less wasteful than updating a wall finish. We’re seeing a lot more 3D art as 3D software becomes more accessible to artists. Dreamscapes are a popular way to offer the sense of escapism consumers are seeking and these feel soft, utopian and optimistic. Prints by Adlunastudio via Adobe Stock [3] are a perfect example and a great opportunity to add trending colours to a space, such as WSGN’s 2023 colour digital lavender and complementary tranquil blue, both offering positivity and playfulness. We also love the fluidity of Digital Artist and Graphic Designer Maalavidaa’s work [4], inspired by colour therapy and emotion, which uses digital processes to create something that feels organic.

Although flexibility with an environment is important, that’s not to say everywhere should be a blank canvas. Being conscious of material application for future adaptability is key, while