Preeminent law firm Davis Polk’s relocation presented an opportunity to reconceive their offices. Facing the sensibilities of a post-Covid world, the team reasoned that a comfortable, flexible, amenity-focused design would accommodate long workdays and encourage staff back into the office. This aim suggested taking inspiration from a residential/hospitality aesthetic that balances professionalism with warmth.

The architectural design uses fine materials and unusual ceiling treatments to enrich the spaces.  The lighting solution is a key part of this vocabulary. Whether integrating illumination into the architecture to highlight finishes or creating a statement with ceiling slots and coves, the design works with curated decorative fixtures to create a dramatic, layered composition.

Innovative lighting in private offices is just one example of our contribution to the design’s success. Slender, wall-mounted indirect fixtures create a soft ambient glow, while downlights and wallwashers light tasks, artworks, and zoom calls. A narrow linear fixture along the fronts of the offices lights the corridors, while mitigating the darkness triggered by energy sensors in unoccupied offices.

A central dimming system offers selective control or full flexibility, depending on the space. The design uses 28% less power than permitted by code, contributing 4 points to the project’s LEED Gold certification.

Throughout the project, lighting enriches the architecture, reinforces user comfort, and creates experiences that invite people back. Human-centric lighting is inviting and emotionally resonant, raising the standard for what a workplace can be.