Tantris, Germany
For over 40 years, Tantris has held its position as one of Munich’s top dining experiences. In addition to Michelin-starred cuisine, the restaurant’s rich interior scheme has been key to its success – not least that of the Main Room designed by renowned Swiss architect Justus Dahinden. ‘Red as a lobster, black as truffles,’ this is the heart of Tantris – with walls that arch steeply to the centre of the room and wide glazed façades.
In November 2012 owner Fritz Eichbauer asked interior designer Danilo Silvestrin to create a new light piece to sit above the reception area to the main room, one that would work alongside the existing Asian sculptures and striking colour scheme. Previous glass chandelier installations had proved unsuccessful, so Silvestrin adopted a different approach.
“I recommended a gold colour that would, in my opinion, represent a congenial match with the existing rooms, while I was convinced that the form of the new chandelier should be something very much contrasting with the restaurant’s architecture,” he explains.
Silvestrin contacted Christoph Matthias, the owner of Lichtlauf, with a proposal to adapt the company’s existing Lichtenfest piece, amplifying it to over two metres in height and giving it a new computer-generated shape.
The pendant is created from ten layers of aluminium, worked together by hand and finished in gold leaf. Three dimmable 230W Osram Halolux Ceram lamps sit within the piece. Manufactured and installed by Matthias and his team, the new chandelier fills the space with smooth golden light, while reflecting the fiery colours of its surroundings.
“In collaboration with Mr Matthias, we created a real marvel,” says Silvestrin, “One that harmonises perfectly with its orange-red ambience and which – as a counterpoint and real eye-catcher – blends in with the surrounding architecture.”
