When you think of commercial buildings your mind probably goes straight to dull office buildings. Commercial building design doesn’t have to be all cubicles and gray color palettes. There is a lot of room to use color and light to create stunning commercial buildings. Not only does light and color make a building more welcoming for those that will use it, but it can also make the design process more creative and intriguing. Here is a guide to creative uses of color and lighting to inspire your next commercial building designs.
Aspects of Commerical Building Design
Before you can get down to picking fun colors and lighting solutions, it’s necessary to understand the different things you need to consider when designing a commercial building. A commercial building will usually be used for businesses and may include offices. You must think about who will be using the building that you are designing and how to make it functional for them. You will have to take into consideration the layout of the building, as well as the surrounding areas for traffic flow, parking, and ease of access to the building itself. You also need to be knowledgeable about the costs of certain design decisions and how they may impact the overall budget of your project. You can find more detailed information on the beginning stages of the design project in this write-up from ZP Architects & Engineers.
When it comes to the final product of the design of your commercial building, you can start to get creative. First, you’ll need to understand what type of client you are creating the building for and their plans for everyday use. If they are a younger company looking to bring in creative individuals, you may be able to go all out with colors and lighting designs. If the company is looking for something more versatile, you can choose a color palette that is more neutral and can be used in many different contexts. Let’s move on to some creative uses of color and light that can enhance your commercial building design.
Custom Colors
One way that you can make a commercial design completely unique is by using custom colors. This can either be picking out a color palette that is completely unique to your building. Or you can work with paint experts to create brand-new custom colors to fit the goals of your project. Try to think about the goals of the people using the building. If they are making creative projects you may want to choose bold colors like blues, reds, and yellows that can help enhance creativity. If you need a space that is more calming or neutral you can begin adding accents of black, white, or beige around the design. Custom colors can also help you collaborate with your clients and make the commercial design feel like a team effort.
Murals and Accent Walls
You can’t get much more creative with color than creating a mural as a part of your commercial design. There are a couple of different places where you can incorporate murals into your design. If the outside of your commercial building is quite plain and in a high foot traffic area, you can commission a mural on the outside of the building.
If the outside of your building doesn’t have a material that can be easily painted on, you can find places inside that work well for murals. The lobby of a building is an excellent spot to put a piece of art that welcomes everyone who walks in. Long hallways that may otherwise be dark or plain can also be great spots to add a bit of color.
If the building you’re designing needs to be multifunctional, you can steer towards adding an accent wall. An accent wall is a wall that is a different color than the rest of the walls in a room. It can make a room feel more unique even if it’s a simple color like grey or soft blue.
Sculptural Lighting Pieces
Since commercial buildings tend to be large and need to use as much space as possible, there may be areas that don’t get much natural light. This means that designers have to get creative with lighting solutions throughout their commercial builds. One of those solutions is sculptural lighting pieces.
A sculptural lighting piece can be one light or multiple lights put together to make a piece of art. Using a sculptural lighting piece can allow you to create something that is completely unique to the building you are designing. It also adds intrigue to anyone visiting the space while also being functional in adding lighting to areas that don’t get as much natural light.
Conclusion
Commercial buildings can be unique and functional. Using color and lightning in creative ways can take an otherwise boring space and turn it into something incredible. When designing your commercial buildings, don’t be afraid to try out creative techniques to make them truly special.