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Warm and Comfortable
One Designer's Approach to Lighting
Opened in late 2006, Mélange, a bistro and wine bar in Ann
Arbor, Mich., features deep, dark colors. The colors team with the
strategically warm lighting to achieve the desired affect, says John
Janviriya, co-owner, interior architect and designer. Janviriya also
was behind the design of Reserve Chicago and the soon-to-open Crescendo.
Getting Warmer
“(Reserve and Crescendo) are both lounges, with a little bit of a
different feel than Mélange, which is a very warm space,” he says. “You
feel very comfortable; when you’re in the space, you feel the space.
“We use a lot of earthy materials, like lit onyx and linens. I
didn’t do any direct lighting. Everything is back-lit or recessed. “The
key to Mélange and why visually it’s very successful, is you can’t see
any light sources. Everything is a hidden light source.”
Besides achieving the right warm, comfortable vibe, Mélange and Reserve also have found other benefits from this approach.
“You can get away with using really inexpensive fixtures by doing
that, so you’re not spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on
lighting,” Janviriya says. “It’s one very inexpensive way to get a
very dramatic light source. I used a similar philosophy at Reserve,
because we had a really tight budget. Everything was back-lit at
Reserve, and we used color-changing LEDs, controlled from the DJ booth.”
The fixtures used for the back-lighting can be as simple as basic track lights, Janviriya says.
Since Mélange has no DJ booth and no color-changing LED lights,
management controls the lights with architectural dimmer packs.
Other Concerns
“When you’re looking at regular light fixtures, you also have to
factor in light bulb replacement and what type of light it gives off,”
Janviriya says. “You want to make sure it gives off warm light. They
might not necessarily be the most efficient bulbs, but I’ll use some
incandescents or halogens and dim them down, so I can get as much light
out of the bulbs as I can.”
“It’s not the most sophisticated light system, but when you walk
in, the ambience is very theatrical.” NCB
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