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DETAILS
Torpe was involved in created every aspect of the concept and experience at Agnes Cupcakes. The pastal shades seen in similar establisments are absent here, replaced by clean Scandinavian lines of bamboo and marble. Different colour temperatures of white light are used to create depth and warmth within the space.
HIGHLIGHTS
Projects that you would like to change: SUBU in Beijing. We used a lot of LED lighting for this project, and even though we specified of use the highest quality LED lighting the client picked a vendor producing a cheaper quality LED lights, which where not at all satisfying to the needs of the specific design. Obviously the difference can be hard to detect for most, however in this case the high quality light was necessary to capture the design of the large ‘Cocoons’ that made the private rooms spectacular. Through this experience I learned the value of looking into more local vendors for the lighting products, because they are trusted more by the client, and can be a better price.
Projects you admire:
Without being too specific, I admire projects that have the ability to actually take the focus away from the lighting and put the focus on the item you have to illuminate. Creating atmosphere through light is something I value a great deal when creating Branded Spaces..
Projects you dislike:
partner Wang Xiaofei, sparking a fresh influx of international attention. Among the new commissions was a project for South Beauty Restaurants creating their first venue outside mainland China. South Beauty Taipei fuses the best of traditional Chinese and Taiwanese sensibilities while fostering an elegant luxurious dining experience. “When you do a branded space, whether it’s for a restaurant or a hospitality space, it’s very important that you understand what the experience should be, and working with experience is something I’ve done my whole life,” he says. In South Beauty, Torpe’s aim was to create a coherent story from the moment guests enter, giving them a focus of conversation – as much an ingredient in the success of an evening as the food they are served. A hand-painted ceiling, indirectly illuminated around its edges, provides one element, views of the low-lit kitchen provide another. The preparation of Sichuan cuisine produc- es plumes of fire as the oils and spices are thrown around in the wok. This perfor- mance is veiled behind a loose-knit me- dia-mesh waterfall wall. As well as cultural associations with energy flow and prosper-
ity, this combination is typical of Torpe’s theatrical approach to layering a space. Illumination of the dining area is designed to be more discrete, but no less effective: halogen downlights precisely frame each table creating pockets of individual space that allows everyone – notionally at least – to enjoy the intimacy of a snug ‘corner’ to themselves – a prime position to observe the space’s story unfold. As Torpe has discovered, creating a solid narrative for his own studio has proved equally important in garnering the accep- tance of the wider design community. “It’s interesting: if you go into design, and you make design your story, you discov- er that you’re simply not taken seriously before you’re 40,” he says. “If you look around, here in Milan, there are a couple of exceptions, people who are only taken se- riously because they’re in your face all the time. But if you have a bit of dignity and use your creativity in a constructive way - build- ing up a brand and not just doing something for the sake of it – and if you survive until you’re 40, then you’ll achieve success. It’s a question of doing it with self-respect.”
www.johannestorpe.com
Beijing International Airport could benefit from an intelligent lighting design. It is done purely with general lighting. The lighting designer could have used lights to enhance the grand scale architecture. The current lighting solution takes all the effects and the depth out of the room, which I personally think is a shame. When you do large-scale projects like an airport you need to take into consideration that the lighting should add depth and air into the room. And not just cover the whole area with general lighting.
Lighting Hero:
One of my lighting heroes is Patrick Woodroffe. Predominantly a stage-light-designer, designing for Prince and Genesis and so on, he is one of the pioneers in doing automated lighting systems for the stage.
Notable projects:
NASA nightclub in Copenhagen, Denmark; South Beauty Group restaurant in Taipei, Taiwan; Bang & Olufsen flagship store design that my design studio have worked on for the past year. Quite early on we decided to intergrade the lighting into the design and the technology it behind, so when the speakers appear, the lights follow the sound, which gives the spectator a holistic experience
Most memorable project:
It has to be South Beauty Taipei, because it has so many elements of surprise for the spectator. Altogether, the light creates a great deal of the atmosphere in this specific design.
Current projects:
We are working with a wide range of different projects internationally, everything from bedding companies to electronic companies, but also hospitality design within hotels and restaurants – as well as doing a lot of new work with fashion design companies. We have a very broad spectrum of services between our three studios.
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