Le Shore, France
Designheure provides a playful and colourful setting to a seaside luxury brasserie, where guests dine beside lapping waves and cockle shells.
What was once a practical, old-fashioned building housing a bookshop, tourist office, post office and even a radio station, now serves as a place of luxury for those looking to dine amongst design. Entirely redesigned by Jérémie Airiau of architectural design firm ADE Architecture based in Nantes, France, Le Shore is a seafront brasserie on the embankment of La Baule.
Aiming to surprise with the restaurant’s unique positioning and inviting atmosphere, restaurant owner Yves Guérin worked closely with the architectural team to redesign the building. “We had a precise idea of what we wanted to achieve,” said Airiau, “aiming to redesign the building into several spaces, including a bar, a brasserie, a teahouse and a library.”
Initially drawn to the project for Guérin’s meticulous and thoughtful vision, Airiau was then sold on Le Shore for how its interior design and lighting could interact with the restaurant’s stunning sea views. “The lighting was essential on this project from the beginning,” said Airiau. “The main challenge was to use lighting to create different spaces. The client wished for natural daylight, with a more intimate and romantic light for the evening. So all lighting was installed with a dimmable system to allow a change of atmosphere in each space.”
Starting with Designheure’s Nuage collection, guests are greeted in the entrance by a delicate yet prominent lighting scheme, a specific request from Guérin. “The Nuage collection was perfect for this,” said Airiau. Comprised of three pieces from this collection, the yellow Moyen 15 chandelier in front of the stairs gives off a golden glow, with deep yellow shades standing strong among loops of steel cables. This statement piece creates a conversation with the Nuage Petit wall lamps that appear next to the staircase with the same coloured shade, with Petit pendant lamps are also used elsewhere in the restaurant. Also from this collection, Nuage Grand 122 floor lamps feature in a yellow more similar to its adjacent seating area, bringing lighting and furniture together while adding more direct illumination closer to the dining tables.
A main lighting feature consistent throughout the restaurant is Designheure’s Petit Cargo suspension lamps. These work well to draw each space together with a neutral white that makes a statement through its bold design and black outlines. Each dining area takes on a different colour scheme that relates to its seaside surroundings, and the lighting works to exaggerate these colours and emphasise the relationship. “The Cargo collection is like being in a boat, as it illuminates the room in front of the sea,” said Airiau. “Sometimes we feel we’re in an imaginary universe, underwater, submarine, with fishes swimming through the psychedelic wall paper.”
The restaurant truly is an experience to spark the imagination and let guests feel their outdoor surroundings from a sophisticated indoor setting. Designheure’s decorative fixtures hold the right combination of quirky creativity and style for a restaurant with such history and inspiring location.
Pics: Maxime Imbert
