090 PROJECT I CROWN TOWERS HOTEL AND CASINO, CnY OF DREAMS, MACAU

JEWEL IN THE CRowN Drama exudes at the Crown Towers Hmel and casino 1flanks to

a lighting scheme by Australian practice PointOfView

PolntOfVIew, lead by Design Manager Mark Elliott, was appointed back In 2006 as light· fng consultants for the Crown Towers Hotel and C:Uino, a 30-story tower with the top three leveh hosting the VIP pming venue, The Crystal Club. Betow this are the High Roller VIllas, complete homes with entou· 1111,e rooms, catenns facilities, multiple bedrooms, lMng and dining areas deslii'M!d, as you would fmaafne, to the height of luxury. Below these Villas are 20+ floors featuring 2B6 guestrooms. On the podium there are two signature restaurants, Luns Hlng (Chinese fare) and Horizons (clas· sic steakhouse fare). In addltton a huae spawling spa complex comes complete with eight exqulsltety desl~ed treatment rooms, plunge pools, saunas, steam rooms,

a massage lounge, a state-of-the-art fitness centre plus a hair salon and nail services. Bates Smart (the Interior deslsners from Melbourne) deslaned a feature screen that runs the fulllenath of the ecpansive lobby. The screen !s constructed from brushed aluminium tubes of differing shades and colours, suspended from the celllns and plunging Into a light box on the floor. PofntOMew used the screen surface to provide reflected light into the space. At ceiling level the tubes are recessed into a troush housing multiple AR111 narrow beam downltghts that accent the screen from above. lhe feature screen concludes at one end with a maliS spirel of tubes all lit from above with concealed downllghts integrated within the form creating an Intense pocket

Abo'l.o8 The Clyltal Cllib l01J1108 fea!u-naJTOW a-m cbvnlaf* eo~ 111f1hln the e~lllng eove, e~Ne~C~ng 11gtrt ~the eheer curtUI. Well hUng ctllllldllll .. hav& lln'l8gra!8d dO'Willlglrte to accart lt!e tlbllebeiDw

OppollliJ A ealecllan ollmageal'rom tile cryatal Club, Hortzor111 Relleuralt and the High Aoller Vlla8

The Cryslal ~b receplfon feldu- amblerrt lighting coneeaJ8d In eel Ifill <lCIY8II and the floor trouah, aneomJif,RinQ tile room 1llf1h ll111rt. CI.IICom IMde 1ant1ma auii'OIInd tile aedng area and MFit8 uplllllrte are lln18gra!8d In lt!e bal8 en&UIIflll a IICift glgw which hldN off towwdl the top

Hortzona features a ecu_.. eel Ifill tea!ln ol IUifl*lcled mirrored l'IIAIII~ fRim multfpleeourCo811 et eectleld8 and from eboVB. The re1'leclled ~ lghl c1'811!e8 a drarna!IC errtry lta!emerrt

The Ill .. fMtln riCh Willi hlbrfe~.-ntad w11t1 Willi waa11 dO'Willllllrt8111f1h amblerrt 2400K cold cathode lghtfng nlflec:tfng o1'l the gold leaf e~lllng ·a eymbol of luc:k In,._, Nlura

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Pcllni:Otl/l8w' uaecl tile ICI'a.leurface In ltleloblly to pf'IMde nflacted light 1n11o the epace. At ceiling 111va11 tubee are I'IIC8I88d Into a trough IIOI.illlf18 murupre AR111 niii!VW'beem cbvnlgtl'lltt.t .-rtltle-n from~

of llaht below to reveal the dest1natton. At the opposite end, a crystal chancletier with thousands of individually hung cry.5tal spheres Is lit from above aeatlng sparkle above the lobby lounge bar. General lighting fn the lobby comes from coves that wash the marble wall, AR111 downlights to the s,eating areas featuring fibre optic wall-hung pendants wfth lnte­gntted downllghts and accent downliJhts wtthfn the perimeter cove enhanclna the vertical supports to the pendants. Movina up to level two takes you to Ho· rtzons, the Crown Towers signature res­taurant. As you enter there is a sculptural cellfns feature of suspended mirrored facets that are lit from multfpl.e sources at each side and from above. The reflected scattered light creates a dramatic entry statement. In the entry lounge a perimeter cove conc:ea!J downllghts to accent the sheer curtains, whi!Jt In the main dining area the cCNe conceals 2400K cold cathode to wash the drapes. lntearatecl cold cathode provides a warm glow at low level and enhances the leather cladding around the columns. A rope canopy In the main dlnlns area concludes wfth feature atass pendants over a central table. Upliif'ts and down· lights are concealed behind the banquette seatfng. Streaking light across the ropes

reveal the texture and enahance the form of the room. AR111 dawnliahts pin spot the tables creating drama and intimacy. Also on levet two fs the spa, possibly the laraest In Asia. "This was the most enjoy­able area to design," says E1ltot, "so many different rooms and activities, all with spe­cific requirements and challenges such as heat (In the sauna) and moisture In many of

the wet areas. Pre·retax, retax and post·re· lax rooms cater for all stases of relaxation. lbe saunas and steam rooms were chal· lenging · tlying to find a line11r lillht source that would stand up to the temperature was tricky. We decided on solid core side emit­tins fibre and located the lfsht engfnes out· side of the rooms fn wall cavities, the llaht washing from under the benches provides a perlect subdued effect whiln enhancing the timber I tiles." 'The 'experience showers' feature Inte­grated mosaic: tile RGB LED modules that are prosrammed to cycle between shades of blue for the cool shower and red, oranae and amber for the warm. lbe wet rooms wfth plunge pools are the focus of each of the spas. Ambient light was kept to a mini· mum wtth cold cathode cove lfahtfng befng the main source. Some acc:ent downliahts are also USA!d, but the majority of light ~ centred around and within the pool. LEDs

surround the pool upllaht1na the tfles whilst remaining cool so as not to cause hann to dients resting their arms on the pool edge. Within the treatment rooms a similar ap· proach was taken by lntegrat1ns linear light sources under benches and wtthfn coves, whilst a fibre optic •stany sky' ceilina was installed above the treatment bench. When dfents are rec:efvlng treatments ambient llllhttns Is dimmed very low and the fibre optics shimmer throuif' a drape that ob· SCUI'e$ the Ceiling. lhe Cry.5tal Club ~ a VIP taming facility. Ambient lighting In the circular reception room Is concealed In ceiling coves and the floor trouJh enc:ompass1ng the room wfth light. CUstom made lanterns surround the

seating area · .MR16 upliJhts are intearated in the base ensuring a soft glow which fades off towards the top. A custom made feature chandetfer wtth amber &lass commands the space. Within the aamlnt areas, there Is a balance between deslgnlna for aesthetic and deslan· ing for function. "Anyone who has designed a casino before knows that security Is kina and the cameras take presldence," states Elliot, "so the lfaht leveU on the tables, the direction of shadowing is all important." Adjustable downlight.s are used to accent the green cloth, angles are set to ensure no

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shadawlng, so that aamers and croupiers alike can't conceal any untoward ac:tivi· ties. The crystal chande4ier above provides

an ambient &low and Is the major glamour statement. Surrounding ambient li!Jflt comes from CtNe l1Jhtlnt washing the r1ch fabrics that adorn the walls. The Crystal Club Lounge is a 6.5m high space with a fully glazed fa~ade presenting a view down the Cotal Strip. Narrow beam downlfshts art' concealed within the cellfnt cove streakfna light aacss the sheer curtain, partially ob· scurina the garners• view of the competitor hotels. Leather clad columns are accented In the same fashion. Wall hunt chandetiers have Integrated downllghts to accent the tables below so maintenance tor fittings at high level is reduced. The Club Bar has LED strips integrated behind tile shelving, enhancing the textured stone face. The chandeUer aver the bar ts Ut from above so that the crystal Is the prominent feature rather than the ll&ht source. The High Roller Villas are complementary to VIP garners. Some take up half a floor and contain t'!Vf!r/ Item of luxury you would expect when pm1ng with millions of dollars a night. Rich wall fabrics are accented with wall wash downlights whilst ambient 2-400K cold cathode lighting reflects off the gold leaf ceiling providing the ever Important golden amber ll!ht that Is quintessential to Asian luck In casfnos. LED strip lighting is integrated under joinery etements and within shelving. Decorative screens are fn s1Uhouette where the wall behind Is upUt. The bathrooms are luxurious with huge plun,e baths and a custom dlan· delfer above that lntetrates a downl1Jht to accent the bath. The gold tiled curved wall behind Is haloed with LED strips. Linear fluorescent Is Integrated within the mfr· rors and IP65 versions art' fitted under the shower bench. Mark Elliott is obviously delighted with the scheme. "In an environment where light is so Important and In many cases where the Asian culture rt'qUires higher ll&ht levels than we're used to In the western world, our ptrilospotry was to conceal the light as much as possible whilst enabling all the rich materials to be enhanced. Challenges came by the way of lower quality products being used In opposition to our specfflcatlon. This ts something we•re used to but this was on a much taraer scale. Lucidly au of the custom made chandeliers, pendants, floor and table lamps were made to a very high standard by a Hong Kong manufacturer, Ricardo Lfsht· Int.'' www.pov.com.au

llllft The ·4111CP'ff.,ee tf!O'Mire' fM.ture lr1181Jnad motelc Ill• RCiB LED mo<tll• !hilt tre ~ to cyclll '*-! 8lladea o1' llklt far tilt coollhO'Mir .,d rvcl, ora/1SI and unbar far lhi'WIIrm

Project Delalls Cron 1ftln 1te111w Clll-. Clf or 11re1m1. Mlau Cl!ent: Melco Crown Enlenalnmert Ughtilg llesi!Jl: Poin101V"MM lntallor Artllltm Batn Smut PhO!og~~pllB: William ~miss I MaJI( Elliott

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