KSLD was involved in the refurbishment of the first floor rooms at Hertford House, Manchester Square, London, from 2005 to 2009. Phases 1 and 2 were completed late 2007 and consist of the Study, Oval Drawing Room, Large Back Drawing Room and Small Front Drawing Room. Phase 3, comprising the West Room and the Boudoir, was completed early in 2009. The refurbishment of these areas has been undertaken with a view to returning them to their original state of decoration, complete with silk wall finishes and gilded woodwork.
The Wallace Collection was originally a private collection – the artworks and furniture pieces are viewed within the context of a nineteenth century London townhouse and home. The brief required that the lighting be as inconspicuous as possible, to retain the unique and intimate visitor experience. The historic, listed nature of the interior also had to be respected.
These constraints led to the development of a lighting ‘duct’ mounted to the ceiling, with decorative plasterwork applied so as to appear to be an original element of the rooms. Apertures at the side faces of the duct house spotlights: these are mounted within removable plates. The whole system is modular and maximises flexibility by allowing spotlight plates and plain blank plates to be mounted where required and moved around to suit. 3-circuit track concealed inside the duct carries power to the spotlights.
The spotlights utilise low voltage energy saver dichroic lamps. These offer excellent colour rendering properties, good beam control, extended lamp life and full dimmability, as well as energy savings over standard dichroic lamps. Emergency lighting in the form of miniature LED downlights was also incorporated into the lighting duct.