Having lost a major tenant and faced with competition from a new office tower planned for the adjacent site, owners of 52 Martin Place have refurbished all 19 floors of the well-situated building and remodelled its ‘Ground Floor’ levels.
The highlight of the changes is the new lighting scheme for the building’s main lobby. Centred around innovative sculptures by Matthew Harding and featuring extensive cove lighting which frames suspended artworks, the integrated spotlights throughout the foyer reminds one of an airy ‘art gallery’ space.
Point of View, the firm responsible for this change, believes that it was necessary to shift away from the typical down-lighting scheme so often seen in commercial lobby spaces. By insisting on a detailed integration of the lighting, they could create a point of difference and a rich sense of quality to the entrance of the building.
“A critical element is the wall washing to the white marble wall, which enhances the feeling of daylight ingress,” says POV Design Director Mark Elliott. “At night time the wall washing is turned off and the drama of in-ground up lighting to the lift core begins to unfold.”
Instead of multiple entry points, the large new entrance foyer within a polished black portal is now the main entry point, and sits on Castlereagh Street.
The reconfiguration of the ground plane also introduces a vibrant new cafe and additional informal meeting areas. Below this main entrance level and its foyer-level cafe, the building has its own retail arcade and links to Martin Place railway station.
The clear and open foyer and concierge areas are conceived by Davenport Campbell architects to have a welcoming atmosphere. Skilled lighting supports the design, and the building’s environmental performance is enhanced with energy-efficient T5 lighting systems.
It is predicted that these reconfigurations and the addition of POV’s architectural lighting will enhance the value of 52 Martin Place and reposition it as an A-grade building within the Sydney CBD property market.
All images by Brent Winstone.
