Kumo Bar, Knightsbridge

Step into the glamorous Kumo Bar and be transported away from the grey London day outside. With its red, black and gold décor, the bar has an opulent and dramatic feel which can provide the perfect backdrop whatever your mood.

Kumo Bar, Knightsbridge

The latest project to have been completed by lighting specialist Besselink & Jones is the Kumo Bar in Beauchamp Place, Knightsbridge. For this project, they manufactured a fibre-glass upside-down pyramid ceiling which gives the bar its glamorous mood.

Ben Simpson of Besselink & Jones comments:
“This has been a very exciting project for us; we have collaborated with Theo Theodorou before and his designs are always exceptional but this design project was also technically very challenging. Besselink and Jones is more usually associated with traditional projects using brass, glass or wood, the Kumo Bar allowed us to create something extraordinary with new materials and demonstrate the wide range of skills of our workshop. We feel very lucky to be involved in this project and we knew when we first saw the design that this was going to be very special, the result has surpassed all of our expectations”.

Designers Theo Theodorou and Valerie von Bechtolsheim say of the project:
“We do not consider lighting in a project as an afterthought but as an integral component of the scheme. This is especially so with the Kumo Bar. The illuminated Lotus Onyx bar, for example ‘sings’ because it is backlit and is a logical solution to highlighting the drama of the veining in the stone. Likewise, backlighting the fibre-glass pyramids accentuates the fibres and gives the impression of traditional paper lanterns. The 104 pyramids work in conjunction with the red glass mirrored wall, both to give height and depth to a very challenging basement space. We work closely with J R Cadman / Besselink & Jones because we believe that they best can interpret our designs and this is as a consequence of our close collaboration with them over the years, whether it be with crystal chandeliers, neon lights or anything else we throw at them.

There is no intended single theme to the bar. The aim was to create a dramatic setting that is a momentary escape into something that is out of the ordinary for the visitor. There is a lot of smoke and mirrors but that was necessary in confined space that needed to convey spaciousness. Tricks with the rows of gilded disk lights in the ceilings and walls give a sense of perspective and elongate the lounge area. The disks are of course dimmerable, as is every light fixture in the place, to control the mood.”

Visit the Kumo Bar at 11 Beauchamp Place, London SW3 1NQ