Lighting Design International was established in 1981 - long before the days when lighting was fashionable in the UK and fibre optics and LEDs had been heard of. Design Director Sally Storey developed an interest in the subject whilst studying Architecture at Bristol University. "I was always passionate about windows, daylight and stairs," Storey says, "and the issue of how to get light into buildings."
"I met John Cullen who had just set himself up as a lighting consultant. I worked for him during the holidays and we carried out a series of experiments and surveys of peoples reactions to coloured light and how it changed people's moods," says Storey. All this sounds very familiar today but was cutting edge for 1981.
The mainstay of the company's work then developed from private homes to shopping centres, hotels, restaurants and museums.
In the middle of 1986, John Cullen's sudden, unexpected death left a large question mark over the future. Storey took over as chairman and split the company into two divisions. The retail side, with its
demonstration room, ultimately moved to the Kings Road, while the newly named Lighting Design International took up residence in Hammersmith where it still is today.
The mid-eighties was the time of the property boom and LDI started to focus on commercial work for big city firms with projects such as BP Headquarters, City Place and Chase Manhattan Bank. This has continued since with LDI being involved in one of the largest fit-outs in Canary Wharf of over a million sq feet - a project lasting over 2 years. Hotel projects have also been a growth area with the creative side of LDI being put to the test in resort hotels from the Hilton Resort in Mauritius to the Sandy Lane Hotel in Barbados and boutique hotels in London such as Threadneedles and One Aldwych.
The Philosophy
If one had to define LDI "style" it would be "classical and understated:" generally their schemes are focused on low-key lighting; however, when circumstances suggest, colour and animation are introduced.
They strongly believe in working closely with the client/designer at the earliest stage to ensure that the lighting design is fully incorporated into the architecture.
2003 was a defining year for LDI as they were the toast of the national Lighting Design Awards winning the Leisure Award for their work at Chancery Court Spa - the judges said of the scheme "high quality lighting on a sensible budget" - and the Retail, Restaurants and Hotels award for Threadneedles Hotel - see below. On top of this they picked up work for Lucknam Park, Lord's Cricket Ground and Dublin Airport.
The Staff
Chris Lewis, who joined the company soon after Sally in 1983, has a degree in Furniture and Product Related Design. Senior Designer Nishi Shah joined the company in 1996 after completing both a degree in engineering and a MEng in Architectural Engineering and an MSc in Light and Lighting with Senior Designer Sanjit Bahra joining shortly after with a degree both in psychology and an MSc in Ergonomics and Design. The four Lighting Designers have either worked for manufacturers, other lighting consultancies, come from a background of entertainment and conference lighting or read Maths and Philosophy but were just following their dream. Each has a particular skill to offer which as most large scale projects are handled in teams means the best of each skill can be used to its capacity.
"One of our designers is consistently studying new technological developments and as a company we continuously run in-house seminars keeping each member of the team in the forefront of knowledge," says Storey.
The strength of LDI is that they bring together both a creative and intelligent approach to lighting design and an understanding of the complex technical requirements. Their focus is solely on achieving the most creative lighting solutions for clients - in terms of aesthetics, function, flexibility, maintenance and cost. Where appropriate they are not afraid of pushing the boundaries of using new technology to increase the strength of a scheme.
LDI now employs four senior designers and four designers along with 3 support staff.
Design Director, Sally Storey has specifically employed designers from different backgrounds to enhance the strength of the design team.
Threadneedles
This boutique hotel in the City of London had all the problems of integrating a modern interior by GA Design International into a grade II listed banking hall. LDI were brought in to create a contemporary lighting scheme which would not only do justice to the award winning interiors but also work within the confines of the listed, large volume interior and show off the key architectural features.
Use of recessed fittings was limited so custom-designed decorative fittings were employed in which low voltage sources could be hidden. In the Dining Room floating ceilings were developed which still showed the cornicing but allowed for low glare halogen downlights to be used to highlight the key floral displays providing a focus when the other light sources are dimmed.
Grande Bretagne Hotel, Athens
LDI worked closely with the project manager, architect, interior designer and client to deliver a lighting scheme which was appropriate to this prestigious landmark hotel.
On the exterior many custom made fixtures were designed to fit within the constraints of the existing fabric to minimise their visual impact whilst maximising their effect.
A fibre optic system was developed which is concealed within each lion's head corbel running all around the building at first and second floor level. The semi-recessed uplighters were custom designed to highlight the gold motif on each balcony balustrade to add sparkle while causing no glare within the bedrooms.
Lloyds Court, Newcastle
Working closely with the architects, the stair makers and the electrical engineers, the concept for the quadruple-height space was to make the glass and steel staircase the centre of focus by turning it into the jewel visible from outside. The latest technology of a bespoke LED system developed based around Osram's LinearLight module was used in preference to fibre optics because they offered much less demanding design criteria for the stair with less bulky cableways, and significantly easier installation. The LEDs have sufficient output to allow them to be the primary source of light in the space. One of the interesting aspects is that when the treads are viewed acutely they appear solid, but close up it is possible to see through them giving an ephemeral, ghost-like quality.
Global Switch
LDI were called in to design the lighting for the pubic areas of Global Switch's second internet hotel in East India Dock, to promote the letting of the server space within. Out work covered the reception area with its 50-meter atrium, the surrounding landings, and the two glass-clad stair towers running the full height of the building. An even wallwash at all levels in the
atrium forms a backdrop to dramatic spotlighting, form above and below, of the two scenic lifts. The stair towers are fitted with three vertical lines each of purple-sleeved fluorescent tubes - a very economical way to transform the building into a beacon when viewed from afar.
Atlantic House
Creating a landmark office building was central to the brief. Tungsten halogen downlights reflecting off the cream stone together with indirect cold cathode lighting slots create a warm inviting mood in the double height reception of the main building. On approach to the atrium, the eye is drawn upwards to a dramatic view of the lift lobbies on each floor. Here, Oldham cold cathode lighting was integrated into ceiling and wall details to provide diffuse light whilst creating clean planes of light/dark which are repeated on each floor to create the maximum impact from beyond and within the spaces.
Refurbishment of Major Multinational Bank
The brief was to design and implement a lighting solution as part of an ambitious transformation including diverse architectural and sculptural glass features, while allowing the space to be returned easily to its previous condition. Existing fixtures were reused where possible, the existing control system modified, and significant increases in loads avoided. This meant that more of the limited budget could be used for special effects: Prismex backlighting the glass wall panels, and colour-changing fibre optic edge-lighting the glass front of the reception desk, and the client's seven meter-long etched glass sign in the entrance. The scheme is economical and easily maintained, and yet displays the reception to its very best effect.
Sol Central
We were asked to provide an exciting and attractive scheme for the interior and exterior of this leisure development at the heart of Northampton. The public mall area uses halogen and White SON sources to contrast with colour-changing effects: fibre optic starpoints in skylights, robotic scanners providing regular shows at set times, and this cold cathode cove lighting, running around the whole perimeter. The cove lighting changes colour gradually throughout the day, progressing from blue in the early morning, through yellow, white, yellow again, red and purple, back to blue when the centre closes for the evening. Use of DMX controls means that all these changes take place completely automatically.
Ondatje Theatre, Royal Geographical Society
The lighting scheme for the refurbishment of this 750 seater theatre not only had to be in keeping with the improvements but offer greater performance and flexibility than the previous installation.
The key to the installation were the custom-designed lighting rigs, each holding 20 x 100w 12V AR111 lamps which provided both general lighting, emergency lighting and two spotlights for speakers on the stage. These were maintained by lowering them to floor level using bespoke electrical winches. Lighting to the balcony was provided by custom-designed low voltage downlighters. To overcome the problem of access for maintenance, these are relamped using a special 'claw' tool on a long pole.
information:
www.lightingdesigninternational.com