L'Observatoire International is a lighting design firm established by Hervé Descottes in 1993 in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The firm works within a range of different spatial expressions including architecture, landscape, urban, and fine art projects. L'Observatoire has become known for its innovative ways of applying light within the built environment, and does so by merging the latest technologies with an aesthetic paradigm in order to most advantageously engage and reveal the program, space, and form. The firm has collaborated with architects and designers including

Steven Holl Steven Holl (born December 9, 1947) is a New York–based American architect and watercolorist. His work includes the 2022 Rubenstein Commons at the Institute for Advanced Study; the 2020 Campus expansion of the Museum of Fine Arts Houston inc ...

Frank Gehry Frank Owen Gehry ( ; ; born February 28, 1929) is a Canadian-American architect and designer. A number of his buildings, including his private residence in Santa Monica, California, have become attractions. Gehry rose to prominence in th ...

Diller Scofidio + Renfro Diller has several uses including: People with the surname *Barry Diller (born 1942), American businessman *Burgoyne Diller (1906–1965), American abstract painter * Dwight Diller (1946–2023), American musician * Karl Diller (born 1941), Germ ...

Jean Nouvel Jean Nouvel (; born 12 August 1945) is a French architect. Nouvel studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and was a founding member of ''Mars 1976'' and ''Syndicat de l'Architecture'', France’s first labor union for architects. He has ob ...

Richard Meier Richard Meier (born October 12, 1934) is an American abstract artist and architect, whose geometric designs make prominent use of the color white. A winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1984, Meier has designed several iconic buildings ...

, Peter Marino.

Recent notable works

Transamerica Pyramid The Transamerica Pyramid is a pyramid-shaped 48-story modernist skyscraper in San Francisco, California, United States, and the second tallest building in the San Francisco skyline. Located at 600 Montgomery Street between Clay and Washingto ...

Foster and Partners Foster and Partners (also Foster + Partners) is a British international architecture firm with its headquarters in London, England. It was founded in 1967 by British architect and designer Norman Foster. The firm has been involved in the desig ...

, San Francisco, CA, USA (2024) * Coqodaq, Rockwell Group, New York NY, USA (2024) *

Harrods Harrods is a Listed building, Grade II listed luxury department store on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge, London, England. It was designed by C. W. Stephens for Charles Digby Harrod, and opened in 1905; it replaced the first store on the ground ...

Facade, London, UK (2024) * Lindemann Performing Arts Center at Brown University,

REX (architecture firm) REX is an architecture and design firm based in New York City. The firm's name is intended to symbolize reappraisal ("RE") of architecture ("X"). Notable projects headed by its founder include the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre in Dallas, Texas; th ...

, Providence, RI, USA (2023) * De Durgerdam Boutique Hotel, K&P Architekten, Buro Belen, Amsterdam, Netherlands (2023) * The Schwarzman Center at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

, Robert A.M. Stern Architects, LLP, New Haven, CT, USA (2022) *

LUMA Arles Luma Arles is an arts center in Arles, France created by the LUMA Foundation headed by Swiss arts patron Maja Hoffmann. It encompasses several renovated former railroad factories and the LUMA Tower, a 15,000 square meter tower building design ...

, Gehry Partners, LLP, Arles, France (2021) * Audrey Irmas Pavilion,

Office for Metropolitan Architecture The Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) is an international architectural firm with offices in Rotterdam, New York, Hong Kong, Doha, and Australia. The firm is currently led by eight partners - Rem Koolhaas, Reinier de Graaf, Ellen va ...

, Los Angeles, CA, USA (2021) * Winter Visual Arts Center of

Franklin & Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1787 as Franklin College and later merged with Marshall College in 1853, it is one of the oldest colleges in the United St ...

, Steven Holl Architects, Lancaster, PA, USA (2020) * Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial, Gehry Partners, LLP, Washington, DC (2020) * The Nancy and Rich Kinder Building of the

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), is an art museum located in the Houston Museum District of Houston, Texas. The permanent collection of the museum spans more than 5,000 years of history with nearly 80,000 works from six continents. Follo ...

, Steven Holl Architects, Houston, TX, USA (2020) *

National Museum of Qatar The National Museum of Qatar is a national museum in Doha, Qatar. The current building opened to the public on 28 March 2019, replacing the previous building which opened in 1975. The building was designed by the French architect Jean Nouvel who ...

, Ateliers Jean Nouvel, Doha, Qatar (2019) *

Vessel (structure) ''Vessel'' is a structure and visitor attraction built as part of Hudson Yards in Manhattan, New York City, New York. Built to plans by the British designer Thomas Heatherwick, the elaborate honeycomb-like structure rises 150 feet and consis ...

, Heatherwick Studio, New York NY, USA (2019) * The REACH of the

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...

, Steven Holl Architects, Washington DC, USA (2019) * Château de Malleret Chai, Dubuisson Architecture, Le Pian-Médoc, France (2018) *

Le Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

, Pyramid Renovation, Dubuisson Architecture, Paris, France (2018) * Institute for Contemporary Art, Richmond, Steven Holl Architects, Richmond, VA, USA (2018) * The Grill at

Seagram Building The Seagram Building is a skyscraper at 375 Park Avenue, between 52nd Street (Manhattan), 52nd and 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Streets, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe along with P ...

, in collaboration with designer William T. Georgis, New York NY, USA (2017) * Faena Hotel Miami Beach, Bazmark, Miami, FL, USA (2015) *

Philharmonie de Paris The Philharmonie de Paris () () is a complex of concert halls in Paris, France. The buildings also house exhibition spaces and rehearsal rooms. The main buildings are all located in the Parc de la Villette at the northeastern edge of Paris in the ...

, Ateliers Jean Nouvel, Paris, France (2015) * Seamarq Hotel, Richard Meier Partners, Gengneung, South Korea (2015) * House of Dior Seoul, Peter Marino Architects, Christian de Partzamparc, Seoul, South Korea (2015) *

Metropolitan Museum The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the third-largest museum in the world and the largest art museum in the Americas. With 5.36 million v ...

, Olin Partnership, New York NY, USA (2014) *

Aspen Art Museum Founded in 1979, the Aspen Art Museum (AAM) is a non-collecting contemporary art museum located in Aspen, Colorado, United States. AAM exhibitions include drawings, paintings, sculptures, multimedia installations and electronic media. Building ...

, Shigeru Ban Architects, Aspen, CO, USA (2014) * Fondation Louis Vuitton, Gehry Partners, LLP, Paris, France (2014) *

Hotel Bayerischer Hof, Munich Hotel Bayerischer Hof is a luxury hotel located at Promenadeplatz 2–6 in the Altstadt (Munich), Altstadt district of Munich in Bavaria, Germany. Established in 1841, the hotel remains a destination for celebrities and State visit, guests of stat ...

, Agence Jouin Manku, Munich, Germany (2014) * Fendi Avenue Montaigne, Curiosity, Paris, France (2014) * Viña Vik, Smijan Radic, Millahue, Chile (2014) *

Conrad Hotel Conrad Hotels & Resorts is an American multinational brand of high-end luxury hotels and high-end luxury resorts owned and operated by Hilton Worldwide. As of December 31, 2021, it has 42 locations with 15,085 rooms in 21 countries and territori ...

, KPF, New York, NY, USA (2012) * Daeyang Gallery & Guesthouse, Steven Holl Architects, Seoul, Korea (2012) *

Museum of the Moving Image The Museum of the Moving Image is a media museum located in a former building of the historic Astoria Studios (now Kaufman Astoria Studios), in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens in New York City. The museum originally opened in 1988 as the Am ...

, Leeser Architecture, Queens, NY (2011) *

Cite de l'Ocean et du Surf To cite is to quote or mention a source. CITE or Cite may refer to: * Cite (cycling team), Italy * ''Cite'' (magazine), an American architecture quarterly * CITE-FM, a Canadian radio station * Center for Innovation Testing and Evaluation, a prop ...

, Steven Holl Architects, Biarritz, France (2011) *

Beekman Tower The Beekman Tower, also known as the Panhellenic Tower, is a 26-story Art Deco skyscraper situated at the corner of First Avenue (Manhattan), First Avenue and East 49th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The building was constructed be ...

, Gehry Partners, LLP, New York, NY (2011) *

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) is an art museum in Richmond, Virginia, United States, which opened in 1936. The museum is owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia. Private donations, endowments, and funds are used for the supp ...

, Rick Mather Architects + SMBW, Richmond, VA (2011) *Steel Stacks Campus, Wallace Roberts & Todd, Bethlehem, PA (2011) *

Vanke Center Vanke () is a large residential real estate developer in China. It is engaged in developing, managing and selling properties across more than 60 mainland Chinese cities in the Pearl River Delta, Yangtze River Delta and Bohai-Rim Region, with t ...

, Steven Holl Architects, Shenzhen, China (2011) *Taikoo Place, Wong & Ouyang, Hong Kong, China (2010) *Marc Jacobs Tokyo, Stephan Jakitsch Architects, Tokyo, Japan (2010) *

Guggenheim Abu Dhabi The Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is a planned art museum under construction in the Saadiyat Island cultural district in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Upon completion, it is planned to be the largest of the Guggenheim museums. Architect Frank Gehry de ...

, Gehry Partners, LLP, Abu Dhabi (2010) *Hermes Rive Gauche, Rene Dumas, Architecture Interieure, Paris, France (2010) *ABC Kitchen, Jan Burtz, Jim Denney, Eric Slayton, New York, NY (2010) *Les Lalanne, Musee de Arts Decoratifs, Peter Marino Architects, Paris, France (2010) *

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

Redevelopment:

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and Philanthropy, philanthropist whose donations assis ...

, Diller, Scorfidio + Renfro, New York, NY (2009) *

The High Line The High Line is a elevated linear park, greenway, and rail trail created on a former New York Central Railroad spur on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The High Line's design is a collaboration between James Corner Field Ope ...

, Field Operations, New York, NY (2009) * The Standard Hotel, Polshek Partnership Architects, New York, NY (2009) *

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

Expansion,

, New York, NY, USA (2008) *

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; ) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located on Dundas Street, Dundas Street West in the Grange Park (neighbourhood), Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, the museum complex takes up of phys ...

, Gehry Partners, LLP, Toronto, Canada (2008) *

Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant The Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant is the largest sewage treatment facility operated by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. Since 2010, its eight metallic "digester eggs", which are tall and dramatically ill ...

, Polshek Partnership (now

Ennead Architects Ennead Architects LLP (/ˈenēˌad/) is a New York City-based architectural firm. The firm was founded in 1963 by James Polshek, who left the firm in 2005 when it was known as Polshek Partnership. The firm's partners renamed their practice in mid ...

), Brooklyn, NY (2008) *The Pink Project: Make It Right Foundation, Graft, Founder: Brad Pitt, New Orleans, LA (2008) *Louis Vuitton Foundation for Creation, Gehry Partners, LLP, Paris, France (2008) *

Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health The Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health (LRCBH) opened on May 21, 2010, in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is operated by the Cleveland Clinic and was designed by Frank Gehry. History Keep Memory Alive (also known as KMA) was founded by Lar ...

, Gehry Partners, LLP, Las Vegas, NV (2008) *

Novartis Novartis AG is a Swiss multinational corporation, multinational pharmaceutical company, pharmaceutical corporation based in Basel, Switzerland. Novartis is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world and was the eighth largest by re ...

, Gehry Partners, LLP, Basel, Switzerland (2008) *The French Presidency of the European Union, Agence Sylvain Dubuisson, Brussels, Belgium (2007) *

Vivocity VivoCity is a shopping mall located in the HarbourFront precinct of Bukit Merah, Singapore. It is the largest shopping mall in Singapore, with of net lettable area and of gross floor area spread over a three-storey shopping complex and t ...

, Toyo Ito & Associates, Singapore (2007) * Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Sylvain Dubuisson, Paris, France (2007) *

Guthrie Theater The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The concept of the theater was born in 1959 in a series of discussions among Sir Tyrone Gut ...

, Atelier Jean Nouvel, Minneapolis, MN (2006) *Buffalo Bayou: Sabine to Bagby Promenade, SWA Group, Houston, TX (2006) * Bronx Museum, Architectonica, New York, NY (2006) *

Columbus Circle Columbus Circle is a traffic circle and heavily trafficked intersection in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eighth Avenue, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway, ...

, Olin Partnership, New York, NY (2005) *

Sculptural Ensemble of Constantin Brâncuși at Târgu Jiu The Sculptural Ensemble of Constantin Brâncuși at Târgu Jiu () is an homage to the Romanian heroes of the World War I, First World War. The ensemble comprises three sculptures: ''The Table of Silence'' (''Masa tăcerii''), ''The Gate of the K ...

OLIN Olin may refer to: People Organizations * OLIN, American landscape architecture firm * Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis * Olin College, an undergraduate engineering college in Massachusetts * Olin Corporation, a chem ...

, Târgu Jiu, Romania (2004) * Leeum Samsung Museum of Art, Atelier Jean Nouvel, OMA/Rem Koolhas, Seoul, Korea (2004) * Walt-Disney Concert Hall, Frank O. Gehry & Associates, Los Angeles, CA (2003) *

Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College is a performance hall located in the Hudson Valley hamlet of Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. The center provides audiences with performances and programs in orchestral, chamber, a ...

, Frank O. Gehry & Associates, Annandale-On-Hudson, NY, USA (2003) *

Bellevue Arts Museum The Bellevue Arts Museum is a museum of contemporary visual art, craft, and design located in Bellevue, Washington, part of the greater Seattle metropolitan area. A nonprofit organization established in 1975, the Bellevue Arts Museum (BAM) provide ...

, Steven Holl Architects, Bellevue, WA (2001) * Langston Hughes Library, Maya lin Studio, Clinton, TN (2000) * Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, Steven Holl Architects, Helsinki, Finland (1998) *

Cranbrook Institute of Science The Cranbrook Educational Community is an education, research, and public museum complex in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. This National Historic Landmark was founded in the early 20th century by newspaper mogul George Gough Booth. It consists of ...

, Steven Holl Architects, Bloomfield Hills, MI (1998) * Chapel of St. Ignatius, Steven Holl Architects, Seattle, WA, USA (1997)

Awards

* 2016 -- Architizer Award for ''Fondation Louis Vuitton'' (Paris, France) * 2015 -- IES Illumination Award for ''The Metropolitan of Arts'' (New York, USA) * 2014 -- Global Awards for Excellence for ''Steel Stacks Campus'' (Bethlehem, PA) * 2014 -- Architizer Award for ''The High Line'' (New York, USA) * 2014 -- Lumen Award for ''Les Haras Strasbourg'' (Strasbourg, France) * 2014 -- IES Illumination Award for ''Private Residence in Fire Island'' (Fire Island, USA) * 2014 -- IES Illumination Award for ''Lafayette Grand Cafe'' (New York, USA) * 2014 -- IES Illumination Award for ''Les Haras Strasbourg'' (Strasbourg, France) *IES Illumination Award for Le Ciel de Paris (Paris, France) (2013) *IES Illumination Award for Conrad Hotel (New York, NY) (2013) *IES Illumination Award for Daeyang House and Gallery (Seoul, South Korea) (2013) *IES Illumination Award for Vintry Fine Wines (New York, NY) (2013) *IES Illumination Award for the Virgin Atlantic JFK Clubhouse (New York, NY) (2013) *IALD Award awarded to '' Cite du Surf et de L'Ocean'' (Biarritz, France) (2013) *GE Edison Award (highest honor) for Vintry Fine Wines (New York, NY) (2013) * Lumen Award of Merit awarded to the following projects: '' Cite du Surf et de L'Ocean'' (Biarritz, France) and ''

'' (New York, NY) (2012) * IALD Award of Special Citation for Sensitive Application of Light in a Repurposed Urban Setting for ''The High Line'' (New York, NY) (2012) * IES Illuminations award of Merit Awarded to the following projects: ''The Cosmopolitan'' (Las Vegas, NV), ''Hermes Rive Gauche'' (Paris, France), '' Cite du Surf et de L'Ocean'' (Biarritz, France), and ''

'' (New York, NY) (2012) * Wan Awards Retail Interior Award for
RDAI's Hermes Store
' (Paris, France) (2011) * Municipal Arts Society's Masterworks Award Best Restoration for the ''

Queens Theatre in the Park Queens Theatre, formerly Queens Theatre in the Park and before that Queens Playhouse, is an American professional theatre at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, United States. Artistic and Executive Directors have included ...

'' (Queens, NY) (2011) *Lumen Award of Merit for ''Lincoln Center Redevelopment: Alice Tully Hall and the Juilliard School''(New York, NY) and Private Residence (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) (2010) * World Architecture News Award in Civic Building Category for the
New York Korea Cultural Center
' (New York, NY)(2010) * IES Illuminations award of Merit Awarded to the following projects: ''Newton Creek Waste Water Pollution Treatment Plant'' (New York, NY), ''

'' (New York, NY), and ''Lincoln Center Redevelopment: Alice Tully Hall and the Juilliard School'' (New York, NY)(2010) * Best Redesign awarded by The Municipal Art Society of New York Awarded to the following projects: ''Lincoln Center Redevelopment: Alice Tully Hall'' (New York, NY) and ''The High Line'' (New York, NY)(2010) * Commendable Achievement Exterior Lighting from Architectural Lighting Magazine's Sixth Annual Light and Architecture Design Awards for ''Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant'' (Brooklyn, NY)(2009 *

ASLA Asla (Arabic: عسلة, from Arabic "Assel", lit. ''honey'') is a municipality in Naâma Province, Algeria. It is coextensive with the district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the loc ...

Design Excellence Award for ''Buffalo Bayou: Sabine to Bagby Promenade'' (Houston, TX)(2009) * Chevalier des Arts et Lettres''Knight of Arts and Letters'' Award administered by the Minister of Culture and the Government of France (2008) * Award of Merit from the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

(AIA) for ''Theory World Headquarters and Retail Flagship'' (New York, NY)(2008) * Yellow Pencil Award from

D&AD Design and Art Direction (D&AD), formerly known as British Design and Art Direction, is a British educational organisation that was created in 1962 to promote excellence in design and advertising. Its main offices are in Spitalfields in London. ...

(British Design and Art Direction) for Environmental Design/Installation for the Make It Right Foundation's ''Pink Project'' with Graft as architect (New Orleans, LA)(2008) * Award of Excellence from the

American Society of Landscape Architects The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) is a professional association for landscape architects in the United States. The ASLA's mission is to advance landscape architecture through advocacy, communication, education, and fellowship. ...

for the ''Buffalo Bayou: Sabine to Bagby Promenade'' (Houston, TX)(2007) * General Design Award of Honor from

for ''Columbus Circle'' (New York, NY)(2006) * Institute Honor from Collaborative Achievement in Design

(AIA)(2003) * Award for Excellence in Design from the Art Commission of New York City for the exterior lighting of the ''P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center'' in Long Island City (New York, NY) (2003)

Book Publications

* *

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Official website
Companies based in New York City Architectural lighting design