Specialist, custom luminaire manufacturers Nulty Bespoke have completed a very special commission of a custom-made suspended lighting installation for a new private residence in the South of France.
Working in conjunction with interior designers WL Studio, the Nulty Bespoke team was tasked to use crystal pieces from the homeowner’s old chandelier as the main element of a substantial contemporary lighting installation.
Alison Smith, Creative Manager of Nulty Bespoke, explains: “The crystal chandelier had been stored in the owner’s London attic for years and they wanted to somehow incorporate it into the new French home. The chandelier was dismantled and we were sent samples of the triangular crystal pieces/shards to form the basis of a completely new and contemporary lighting installation for the home’s semi-circular salon.”
The Nulty Bespoke team set out to design an elegant lighting installation that would also serve as a stunning, authentic focal point.
To accentuate the minimal interiors, it was decided that 83 shards of crystal in three sizes, would each be horizontally or vertically individually suspended by thin cables. Fifteen handmade uplighter units with an antique brass finish encase customised LED strips and serve as the only light sources within the piece. After much testing in Nulty Bespoke’s London studios, the uplighters were carefully positioned to ensure as much light as possible reflected off the crystal, creating the impression that the shards were sparkling internally.
Depending on the viewing angle of the installation, the configuration of the crystals and uplighters elicit a very different impression, from airy and peaceful to compact and tumultuous. The result is a dynamic piece with a subtle Cubist feel that softly mimics the curves of the space it inhabits.
“One of the biggest challenges with this piece was the ceiling plate,” explains Smith. “It was the largest one we have ever designed. The ceiling plate needed to be 3m x 1.5m in order for the installation to have the visual and emotional impact we intended, yet we didn’t want the eye to be distracted by the fittings. The fabricated steel plate was white powder coated to seamlessly match the ceiling colour and we managed to keep the plate’s depth minimal yet secure enough to hold the weight of the piece.”
