One Piccadilly

heating the metal with a bright flame. This malleable metal is then randomly sculpted into each pendant's unique shape. “The heating technique, which plays with the metal’s property, has become a hallmark of the studio’s collection,” adds du Bouëtiez. “The shimmering of the delicate fabric and the floaty allure of the moving material on [Fuller’s] costume is reimagined onto the brass structure of the light,” he continues. “With the limited-edition version, the straw marquetry represents the rays of light that accompany the dancers.” Midoz explains the challenges they faced when creating a collection of pendants suitable for mass production: “The initial challenge was to design a signature piece with artisanal know-how, that could be part of a high-street collection, producing a series of Loïe suspension on a larger scale whilst ensuring the quality of the handmade piece. “Once this had been achieved, we decided to collaborate with Lison de Caunes to create an exclusive and limited-edition version of the Loïe suspension. The aim was to continue the movement of the Loïe petal with the fibres of the straw,” she continues. “Her workshop is centred around straw marquetry; it is her signature craft. So, working with this atelier was a simple and clear decision. Both of our studios evolve in the same spheres of creation and design, making this partnership even more natural. “Each sprig of straw is individually applied by hand; as every lamp has a unique shape, the radial straw marquetry pattern is always different from one piece to another. “Lison de Caunes is an icon and offers a rare savoir-faire.” Adding of the initial collaboration stages, de Caunes says: “We were immediately captivated by the pairing of straw and metal. We had already worked with wall lights, floor lamps and bedside lamps, but the only thing missing was a chandelier.

From left: Lison de Caunes, Jennifer Midoz and Malo du Bouëtiez

“We had to find the best way to arrange the straw according to the shape of the lamp. It was also important to think about how the light would play with our marquetry. To make sure that the colour of the straw matched the colour of the brass metal, we made a prototype. “The rye straw used in marquetry comes from Burgundy, France. I have been working with it for nearly 40 years; I inherited the craft from my grandfather André Groult, a famous designer from the Art Deco period. I think I can say that I have mastered it after three decades, even if it still surprises me every day.” The first Loïe is the product of 10 years of Mydriaz’s research. “Even though the real work of design and conception only takes a few months, the Loïe carries with it the full history of the Mydriaz studio, through the simple gesture of a brass petal naturally reshaped by the flame,” says du Bouëtiez. “The Loïe, made in collaboration with Lison de Caunes, is a result of a complex technical creative process and hours of meticulous work. All the brass elements and the straw marquetry were handmade in both of our Parisian workshops.” Adding on some of the challenges she faced, de Caunes says: “We are more used to working with much larger furniture pieces, with a wooden base or even wall paneling. In the past, we have worked on lamps, including a metal creation by Hubert le Gal (the Serpentine sconces). Each new creation presents a challenge for us. Here, it was creating a marquetry that would fuse well with the curves of the lamp, but also to work with a piece that would be visible from below, which we had never done before!” With the original, all-metal version of the Loïe available to a broader market as part of Mydriaz’s high street collection, the special straw version is an exclusive piece from the studio, that also forms part of a gallery collection. “With the addition of pale gold and straw marquetry,

the elaborate design of the Loïe is both exquisite and striking. It is an exceptional piece that radiates and brings warmth to a room,” reflects Midoz. “We work with light as a material, and this particular Loïe suspension light is delicate, suave and vaporous.” Commenting on the final outcome of the sophisticated pendant, de Caunes says: “I love it! I think it looks wonderful; it is light but at the same time gives a real presence in a room. The straw is accentuated by the shape and the perfect design of the lamp. It is an utterly beautiful collaboration that I was delighted to be part of with Mydriaz.” “Since its creation, Mydriaz has always specialised in working with bronze. Today the primary material remains, and we like combining it with other materials such as glass, ceramics and textiles. It was important for us to honour this in our celebration of Mydriaz’s 10th anniversary. “For this limited-edition piece, we were keen to collaborate with an artisan that deals with completely different materials to us, so that we could propose several expressions on the movement of the petal. The straw marquetry adds a new dimension to the reflection of polished brass, as it creates a linear movement to it and perfectly aligns with the hanging of the suspension,” concludes du Bouëtiez. mydriaz-paris.com www.lisondecaunes.com

The Loïe pendant celebrates Mydriaz's 10th anniversary in its first high street collection. As part of its first gallery collection, the original Loïe was adapted in collaboration with Parisian artisan Lison De Caunes to create a unique and stunning straw version. The directional stripes of straw reflect the light beams breaking through the movements of American dancer Loïe Fuller, who inspired the pendant's shape and name.

044 | OFFICE PROJECT | ONE PICCADILLY City Centre Oasis

Interior design studio SpaceInvader transforms the previously lifeless One Piccadilly office and retail building in the heart of Manchester, UK, into a vibrant and contemporary bustling hub. Inspiration from the city's rich history was used to influence colour palettes and fixture choices.

Manchester-based interior design studio SpaceInvader has transformed one of the city’s well-known developments at One Piccadilly Gardens for LGIM Real Assets (Legal & General). Originally designed by architects Allies and Morrison, and developed in 2003 by Argent, the building faces into the gardens with an impactful red-brick frontage. Comprised of retail on the ground floor and office space above, SpaceInvader's brief was to design new interiors for the six-storey Grade A office spaces, creating a more inviting, dynamic office that promoted a sense of welcome, wellbeing, flexibility, and collaboration, via a scheme that would match the building fabric in terms of character and presence. “The transformation forms part of a bid to bring more life and love to this part of the city,” says SpaceInvader Founder John Williams. “Helping to ignite a more vibrant surrounding area with a café culture feel. Legal & General took the decision to invest in the building in order to make a mark and help elevate the overall Piccadilly area.” Senior Interior Designer on the project is Regina Cheng who sat down with darc to discuss the project and SpaceInvader’s design intentions. “We were appointed by the client right at the outset, creating a feasibility study for the different areas, analysing how the spaces were being used and putting together test fits and concept ideas for how to improve them,” she explains. “We then worked closely with the project team through to completion.” The original interior of One Piccadilly comprised an entrance to the office building located on a cut-through that sees a lot of throughtraffic but offered no real sense of arrival. Existing views through to the interior gave off unwelcoming, dull and grey impressions. Once inside, an existing, huge-scale reception desk functioned more as a barrier than a welcoming element, discouraging people from doing anything but passing straight on through the speedgates, despite a few additional arrangements of loose furniture serving as waiting areas. The double height diagonal void through the ground and first floors of the building was also not utilised to its best advantage. “There was a great opportunity here,” Williams reflects, “to turn the personality of the offer around, working with, rather than against the building. A new interior that was properly integrated with the building’s stature, location and material palette was called for, to make the most

of the great corner location and views out. This was evidently a wellestablished building with real potential for change.” SpaceInvader was commissioned by Legal & General for the concept stage of the project and then novated across to commercial interior design, build and delivery specialist ADT Workplace for the construction delivery stage, and the scheme’s project managers were Paragon. The full scope of works by SpaceInvader covered the entrance, reception and atrium areas, a new upper basement bike store with adjacent changing rooms and shower space, the building’s lift core and circulation areas and a refreshed design for the non-tenanted office spaces on the third and fourth floors, as well as the scheme’s wayfinding. The concept formed by SpaceInvader was centred around the idea of creating a new community culture, featuring a series of attractive spaces for people to sit, relax, meet, and collaborate. Taking nods from the building’s rich history, the design also needed to be timeless with a non-exclusive appeal catering to a wide user and age-range demographic. The site dates back to the 18th century when Piccadilly Gardens was a wasteland on the edge of the city and known as the “daub holes”; an area home to a wet pit and ponds from which clay was extracted and used for the construction of wattle and daub structures. “We were inspired both by the terracotta colour of clay and the outer red building façade when it came to creating the design palette,” says Cheng. “Although, as it’s such a strong colour, the terracotta was to be used for highlights only. We also looked at the origins of the word Piccadilly, which comes from a 17th century frilled curved collar known as a piccadill. Roger Baker, a tailor who became rich making piccadills, lived in the area. The origin of the word is thought to be the Spanish “picadillo”, meaning pierced or punctured. Subtle references to this in the form of curves and punctures, especially using light, also formed part of our design language.” Lighting formed a central part of the brief, with various needs demanding unique attention, from task lighting and decorative ambience to wayfinding. “We didn't use a lighting designer but worked with Hydrock (M&E consultant) in the early stages to ensure we had the right general lighting lux levels to supplement and support the

feature lighting,” explains Cheng. “Once on site, ADT - who delivered the project - brought on Lorne Stewart (M&E Contractor), who worked with Glamox Luxonic to develop the scheme for the general lighting. For the more bespoke areas, such as the external entrance and the atrium, we worked with lighting specialists Studiotech, whose expertise and experience were invaluable to advise on and deliver our vision for the layering of the suspended hooped lighting and the overhead entrance planter with integrated lighting.” The entrance to the building posed one of the greatest design challenges for the team, as a statement needed to be made without changing the external façade. “We re-thought the entrance as a ‘puncture’ within the passageway, changing its hidden nature and making it stand out by the creation of a new, hanging biophilic light installation above the entrance, set within a rectilinear LED light, which extends the full breadth of the passageway and is clearly visible from either direction of approach,” says Cheng. “We then added a new round ‘bus stop’ signage, using the development’s existing ONE logo, where all branding previously had related only to neighbouring retail and hospitality offers. We also increased the presence of the glassfront manifestation. Clear views through now ensure a new era of transparency for the interior, celebrating rather than concealing its existence.” The new reception area was completely rearranged, with a new, smaller bespoke desk featuring a portable Lee Broom table lamp, linking to other feature pendant lights in the space. Here, highlights of terracotta feature in various furnishings and finishes, as well as a play on ideas of light and dark referencing the concept inspiration of piercing and puncturing. The first seating area close to the reception presents a striking curved nook that houses chestnut leather Gubi Masculo chairs alongside terracotta accents that create a warm and inviting area. A Lee Broom Lens Flair pendant hands over the space with two further identical pendants in the seating area adjacent. The main reception area features four large-scale Flamingo pendants from Vibia. “The feature lighting choices all stemmed from what we thought complemented our concept and the overall look and feel of the scheme,” explains Cheng. “We chose the Lee Broom Lens Flare pendant and table lamp, for example, for its contrast of two halves (the dark solid against the soft deflected light through a transparent crosscut lens), reinforcing the concept of light and dark. “The Vibia Flamingo lights offered the soft light, curves and layering that complimented the double height space and the curves within the design.” Moving into the atrium, architectural lighting is used in balustrades