Mock-up
For most lighting details we propose, we create in house mock-ups to test fixtures and see how they perform. Sometimes these mock-ups happen on site.
We have been working with Rockwell Group and Related Group on a restaurant in the Hudson Yards Development. We can’t say much more about the restaurant except that it will be stunning and will open this Fall.
As projects evolve, design changes can occur. Sometimes changes are minor, but sometimes they are major. As veterans of this process we always try to factor in some wiggle room, so we can switch gears when we need to.
In this case, for the mezzanine level kitchen, once a glassed-in showcase on display to the restaurant below, it was decided it was too good of an art feature opportunity to let pass by. We received an addendum and were told the showcase wall would become a mural. The artist hadn’t been chosen yet, so we designed a cove to conceal a continuous LED up light as a placeholder and waited on standby.
Well, that mural ended up being a thick, textured, gorgeous relief depicting a landscape scene. So, back to the drawing board for us. Luckily, Rockwell Group is a close ally and we were able to convince the client a full-scale mock-up was required to test a new lighting scheme (and to convince the client to spend a bit more to light the artwork properly).
The mural/relief on the left shows the placeholder lighting detail, a small channel with a linear LED flood up-light. The mural/relief on the right shows the proposed lighting detail, a small channel with a higher power linear LED flood up-light with a grazing optic. The grazing optic picks up the texture and depth of the relief and pushes the light farther than the fixture on the left.
This mock-up was also an opportunity for the artist to propose two versions of the mural in different color saturation.
The more muted version reflected the lighting better and allowed the light the capture more of the texture.
These mock-ups were constructed out of foam core on site and held to the framing by gaffers tape. The final channel will be made out of metal with a bronze finish.
Rockwell Group
Location, New York City, Hudson Yards
Photographs by Charlie Dumais
