Page 21 - Designing Ways 280

and a raised stone walkway which recall
a traditional Japanese garden, pared
down to its essential elements in a spirit
of minimalism. Employing a dark colour
palette here, the designer wanted to
introduce the feeling of a calm moonlit
evening, while the main source of natural
light is the dining room of the restaurant
beyond, drawing visitors in.
Overhead, curved panels catch the light
from above, while also calling attention
to the restaurant to visitors looking down
from the mall level above.
Visitors must pass through a narrow
hallway at the entrance, so that the space
seems to dramatically open up when
they reach the main dining hall. The
overall restaurant is of a tall, long, and
elongated proportion, which the designer
felt needed an appropriate amount of
visual variation. To that end, he has
taken the moonlit theme from the outer
area and extended it to the interior –
predominantly dark wall panels, flooring,
and furniture predominate, punctuated
with eye-catching details and linear
illumination of gold.

dw • Issue 280 21