speirs + major were invited to re-light usher hall, edinburgh, one of scotland’s main historic arts venues. The project was part of a major refurbishment, led by architects LDN, to upgrade the building and add a modern extension.
Our aim was to design an integrated approach to light, carefully concealing equipment and retaining the architectural integrity of the building.
One of the challenges we faced was finding a solution for lighting the spiral stairwell that links the original usher hall building with its modern extension. The cylindrical, concrete walls meant it was difficult to fix lighting in a way that would appear architecturally integrated.
So, they developed the idea of a contemporary chandelier – a single shaft of light that forms the central axis of the spiral staircase.
The structure solved several issues at once: not only of lighting, but also issues of mounting, cable routing and maintenance.
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