Bäckerei Felber
Vienna |Shop
Architect: Klune Plan / Photos: Cynthia Fischer
Project Description
At Bäckerei Felber, the role of light changes with the scale of the space. In the retail area, lighting focuses directly on bread, pastries and display surfaces, while in the seating area, larger illuminated wall panels become defining elements of the architecture.
The darker retail fixtures provide a backdrop for brightly illuminated shelves and display cases. Integrated lighting highlights the products against their surroundings, revealing textures, shapes and the variety of baked goods without illuminating the entire space uniformly.
Along the continuous bench seating, the lighting takes on a different character. A sequence of indirectly illuminated wall panels visually connects the individual tables into a coherent zone, establishing a calm rhythm throughout the elongated interior.
The lighting therefore operates at two different scales. It distinguishes individual products while also organising larger architectural surfaces. The retail and seating areas each acquire their own lighting character, yet remain visually connected within a unified interior.
Project Information
Architecture Type: Bakery with integrated retail and seating areas, a glazed street-facing façade, dark retail fixtures and an elongated seating zone structured by a sequence of wall panels.
Lighting Concept & Design Approach: The lighting design distinguishes between the detailed presentation of individual products and the illumination of larger architectural surfaces. Integrated lighting highlights bread and pastries within the darker retail fixtures, while indirectly illuminated wall panels define the seating area as a coherent zone. Directed light sources complement both areas.
Luminaire Integration: Integrated lighting within bread shelves and display cases, black track systems with adjustable spotlights, and indirect light sources incorporated into the rectangular wall panels behind the continuous bench seating.
Spatial Effect: Small, high-contrast lighting accents distinguish the individual product displays. Larger, recurring illuminated surfaces establish a calm rhythm along the seating area. Together, these different lighting characters define retail and seating as distinct yet connected parts of the interior.
Questions About Lighting Design for Bakeries and Retail Spaces
- How can bread and pastries be effectively illuminated on display shelves?
Integrated light sources can highlight baked goods directly within the shelving structure. At Bäckerei Felber, the products stand out against darker backgrounds, making their crusts, textures and different shapes more clearly visible.
- Why is brightness contrast between baked goods and retail fixtures important?
A darker background enhances the visibility of illuminated products. This allows bread and pastries to become the primary visual focus without requiring the entire retail fixture to be illuminated uniformly.
- What role do track systems and directed spotlights play in bakery lighting?
Track systems with adjustable spotlights provide targeted illumination that complements the integrated product lighting. At Bäckerei Felber, the black tracks form part of the overhead architectural structure, allowing light to be directed towards both the retail and seating areas.
- How can indirect wall lighting structure an elongated seating area?
A sequence of illuminated wall panels can visually connect several seating groups into a continuous zone. At Bäckerei Felber, the regularly spaced panels establish a rhythmic lighting pattern along the continuous bench, reinforcing the length of the interior.
- Why do the retail and seating areas of a bakery require different lighting approaches?
In the retail area, lighting needs to reveal small products and their details. In the seating area, the emphasis shifts towards the spatial character of the surroundings. At Bäckerei Felber, illuminated shelves and display cases support product presentation, while larger illuminated wall surfaces shape the atmosphere of the seating area.
- How does a bakery’s interior lighting influence its visibility from the street?
Large glazed surfaces allow illuminated interior elements to remain visible from outside. At Bäckerei Felber, the recurring bright wall panels and illuminated signage provide recognisable visual reference points without requiring separate illumination of the entire façade.
