Friends Seminary Cafeteria
New York City, NY
Completed 2013
5,000 sf Interior Renovation
Design Architect:
Tinmouth Chang Architects
Photography: Peiheng Tsai
Friends Seminary needed to renovate their 25-year-old cafeteria, creating a dining area with an open kitchen. With the low structure constraining the space,
an angled ceiling was created, maximizing the height to 7-feet 9-inches at the center, angling down to accommodate the HVAC system at the sides.
A random pattern of fluorescent fixtures with perforated baffles spread across the ceiling, following the angled ceiling and fall down the walls on all sides. Perforations allow light to spill onto the ceiling, reducing the contrast between task and ceiling surfaces while preventing high-angle glare. Vertical wall-mounted strips illuminate the end walls. Colored floor tiles mirror the fixture pattern above, tying the space together.
The lighting solved a difficult problem of low, angled ceilings in an intelligent manner by creating the perception of more space.