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Regent Street (London) store
Officially called a "light ceiling" by its designers Carpenter/Lowings, this artificial skylight uses 24 very large tilted planes of etched, semi-reflective glass
to create the feeling of a true opening to the sky. In this case, the skylight is in the ceiling of the second floor of a 6-story building.
According to the designers, "The subtle reflectivity of the ceiling also brings a dynamism to the space as the shadows and the images of people using
the glass stair are projected on it from uplights beneath the stair. Apple used the same design Nagoya (Japan) store, although on a smaller scale.
Each ceiling panel is constructed as a unit 6 metres wide by 750mm deep, using a single custom-etched and coated sheet of low-iron glass,
bonded to a stainless steel sheet. Two independently controlled lamp sources are concealed behind the panel and allow the light color to be varied
between blue and white. The designers explain, "The directionality of the tilt of the panels creates a dynamic effect as one arrives in the store,
moves up the stairs and circulates within the upper floor." That is, the lighting is fully visible at the bottom of the stairs, but becomes
less visible as you arrive on the second floor (or from right-to-left in this photo).
At the Nagoya store there are 15 panels, 3.9 meters wide by 750mm deep.
[skylight info / Carpenter/Lowing Web site]
A section drawing of the Nagoya (Japan) retail store showing the glass stairs, glass bridge
and light ceiling details.