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upgrading the basic glazing package. We really want the consumer to
make an informed choice.
Given the modest difference in cost for acoustic glazing, why wouldn’t
you take this as your starting point, not as an upgrade. We see a great
value in keeping street noise on the street rather than in the lounge room.
We were delighted with the glazing work by Jenmat (contractor on site)
and the way our LightBridgeTM units were integrated with the black steel
frames throughout the building. The resulting windows felt substantive
and “trustworthy” — a featured “daylight appliance” essential to the
human experience and premium appeal of each room.
MirraEchoTM Bronze
We feel that interior glazing is a greatly under-exploited opportunity
for designers in commercial and residential spaces alike. Offering so
much more than “paint, paper and tile”, glass brings a rich new palette of
design elements for interior designers by giving them command of lustre,
luminosity, visual and surface texture, transparent colour and deeply
layered printed designs. These are things that can, like no other material,
transform surfaces, softly partition rooms, and combine to challenge our
perceptions of the size, form and limits of the space. Obviously, we were
keen to show a little of what we had to offer on The Block!
We feel that interior glazing is a
greatly under-exploited opportunity
for designers in commercial and
residential spaces alike.
Early in the process, Julian Brenchley invited us into the design
considerations for the grand feature of The Block development — the
entrance foyer. We considered different approaches for glazing which
would echo the art deco heritage of the building and be tonally aligned
to the refurbished timber work. Of course we targeted options to lift the
interior light levels and accentuate the scale of the double-height void,
and create the ‘wow’ arrival.
Though we examined a few different approaches including digital printing
options, and bold vertical line designs. In the end we arrived at a simpler
treatment – clean walls of faceted bronze-mirrored panels, each with a
broad beveled edge to provide visual texture. The MirraEchoTM bronze
product used throughout, outlined with a fine black aluminium angle,
is sympathetic to the art deco styling and also toned down the reflectivity
of the walls compared to ordinary clear mirror, which may have otherwise
been too affrontingly modern and clinical.