Spaces / Cocktail bar
Cocktail bar
Guests photograph one thing in a good bar. Make it the light over the counter, and let the rest of the room stay dark.
What a bar asks of its light
- Mood
- Warm and low. Exposed filaments and lit hats read as glow, not glare, and they look better as the night goes on.
- Sightlines
- One hero piece over the counter, seen from the door. Smaller pieces on the back bar, where seated guests look anyway.
- Practicalities
- A busy back bar needs small footprints: pieces that sit clear of the bottles and out of the bartender’s reach.
Rules of thumb from how we light these pieces. Ask us what we’d do in your room.
The shortlist
Every piece shown at close to the same size, so the details are easy to compare. The real sizes are under each one.
Where to put it
General rules of thumb, not our measurements. Your designer or electrician should confirm heights and wiring for your room.
Over the counter
A pendant over a bar usually hangs about 75 to 90 cm above the bar top.
Give it air
Keep the Empress clear of shelving on all sides, so the cups read as a silhouette.
One hero
One hero piece beats three. Add table pieces after it, not before.
On the back bar
Table pieces at or above the eye level of a seated guest hide the cable and show the glow.
One Object, One Venue
Does your place already have its object?
- The bar’s first cocktail shaker.
- The old till from the previous owners.
- A soda siphon from behind the counter.
Examples to show the idea, not past projects.
We can turn it into the room’s own light, one of one like everything here.
Fitting out a bar?
Tell me about the room. I’ll write back with the pieces that fit, their prices and a time to see them lit at the studio.