British lighting manufacturer Northern Lights was commissioned to craft immersive lighting and bespoke metalwork solutions for Virgin Hotels Glasgow, joining forces with Four-by-Two and Luke Artinstall of Art in Light to evoke the city’s renowned shipbuilding history.  

The hotel, home to 242 guestrooms, event spaces and the Commons Club, required immersive, artisan lighting to enrich its interiors while meeting unique specifications. 

At the entrance, a 9m canopy – formed from a steel frame welded with brass plates – houses 256 festoon lights to greet guests, setting the tone for the experience ahead. Tarnished to achieve a rich brass finish, the canopy embodies a warm sophistication that runs throughout the hotel’s design. 

One of the most unique lighting pieces in the venue is the feature ceiling installation found on the Commons Club’s mezzanine level.  Intricately carved details in the domed steel were inspired by wall murals created by local artist Meig Sutherland – subtle figures appear to dance above, giving a distinctly romantic and eccentric vibe, whilst cherry red fringing applied to the interior framework inside the dome offers a sense of tactility from below. 

Lighting up the property’s two bar areas required drawing deeply on Northern Lights’ traditional metalwork skills. A tiered gantry bar fixture, comprising hundreds of brass tubes set in three descending tiers, weighed in at a total of 950kg. Designed with a focus on stability, each detail – from ceiling fixtures to suspension wires – was calculated to balance both function and aesthetics. In the other bar, an intricate fretwork structure in blackened steel suspends above guests, complemented by rich brass table lamps with opal glass shades. 

Northern Lights’ immersive lighting continues through the corridors, lined with two-way mirror tiles and concealed LEDs that create an illusion of shimmering pools of light. Fusing sophistication with functionality, each of the hotel’s 15 floors feature modular, brass-toned lift surrounds, meticulously crafted for durability and high-touch wear.  A specialist custom patina finish was developed for the lifts to tie into the rest of the interior scheme, offering design fluidity throughout.