As projects go this was a biggie in terms of scale, colour and wow factor. The Gloam commercial department relished helping the team behind the global eating experience, ESF (Edinburgh Street Food), transforming over 900 square meters of space into a vibrant environment worthy of all the incredible street food and bar vendors it houses.
The ESF team, headed up by Ben Macmillan, project mastermind, and Marta Gamarro, lead designer, had a pretty incredible vision for the transformation and this saw us working alongside the Scottish artist KMG and the wizards at Solas Neons.
Speaking about the project, the head of commercial, Ange said:
“We could see immediately that the space was going to be next level, with vibrancy and fun being the order of the day. Taking the lead from our client’s vision for the space, we immediately landed on a neon pink for the hero colour pop to sit amongst oodles of lush foliage. Yellow, teal, and orange layers complemented this spirited colour partnership to turn up the liveliness dial. Dried and preserved pieces were added to the base of faux foliage to ramp up that important pink punch. These also served to add a soft, delicate top layer to displays.
After studying the plans and a site visit, it was clear this would be a go big or go home project. We enlisted the help of some amazing new suppliers to allow us to work at this elevated scale. Quality and attention to detail were key when it came to our installation materials. We chose a core collection of foliage that repeated throughout the space with some well-placed statement details exaggerated in size and detail. The design included delicate trailing and cascading features, with many of the installations high up within the industrial ceiling area, we created an undulating composition that ‘grows’ into the dining space and interacts more with the tables and diners.
The project called for various design solutions for the different sections of the restaurant. The team created bespoke hanging pots with graphic details, mesh spheres for height variations, tall mesh towers, and hanging acrylic shapes.
When it came to prep and installation, this was one of the longest-running projects we’ve been involved in, and everyone from the Gloam team took part at some point. Combined with the outside space, we were on site just over two weeks and are currently back to add additional displays to the outdoor pavilions – always wonderful to have an ongoing relationship with a client as they continue to develop and expand. And… it’s always great to install in a place where you know there will be incredible food when lunchtime arrives.”
We’d love to say a special thanks to all the teams we worked with during the project:
Chris Dodds – CTD joinery, and his entire team
KMG
Solas Neons
Swift
Photography by Lianne Mackay
