International lighting design consultancy Nulty has illuminated Archlight, a new boutique cinema at Battersea Power Station’s Circus West Village development. Nulty created a dramatic lighting scheme to reinforce the interior scheme by Ab Rogers Design, an original design aesthetic characterised by bold use of colour, materiality and movement.

The all-LED lighting scheme works across interconnected arches, which house three cinema screens and a central ticket office. ARD’s overarching design concept is to create a warm underworld, compact in scale and cocooned from overpassing trains. This is defined by a unifying tonal palette comprising rich blue and green surfaces, upholstery and curtains, which have been paired with natural stone and bronze finishes.

The focal point of each screen is a three-dimensional ceiling of angled acoustic panels, designed to enhance the cinematic experience and reduce vibrations from the nearby railway. Light performs an integral function, enhancing the theatricality of the design by encouraging the flow of light across the expanse of the curved ceiling. Nulty carefully positioned discreet downlights behind the individual panels, calculating exactly how light would travel across the surface of the ceiling to produce a cascading illuminated effect.

Matthew Allen-Olivar, Intermediate Lighting Designer, Nulty comments: “The layering and complexity of the acoustic panelled ceiling in each auditorium is what makes this such a remarkable project. The drama of the design takes precedence, so our challenge was to apply a technical methodology to the lighting design to create ‘catch and miss’ moments throughout the space.”

The illuminated panel ceilings have been set to deliver individual lighting scenes, greeting visitors with a dynamic effect on arrival, then slowly dimming to provide low-level lighting as the film begins. The aesthetic form of the ceiling is always visible, but slowly fades into the background so as not to detract from the cinema screen.

Within Archlight’s art-deco inspired foyer, Nulty used functional track lighting and a backlit panel to illuminate merchandise displays and complement ARD’s handcrafted joinery and textured bronze surfaces.

About Nulty:
Nulty is a leading-edge lighting design consultancy working with some of the world’s foremost architects and interior designers. Collaboration and teamwork is at the heart of their practice; improving life through light, no matter what the scale, is its goal. A Nulty project is defined by its originality and attention to detail.

Archlight Cinema
https://www.archlightcinema.co.uk

Ab Rogers Design
http://www.abrogers.com