Set on the tranquil banks of Lake Alster, The Fontenay in Hamburg is conceived as a modern classic — a hotel where architecture, landscape, and urban refinement are brought into continuous dialogue. Its circular form opens toward the water and surrounding parkland, creating interiors defined by light, openness, and a carefully controlled sense of calm.
Within this architectural framework, Brand van Egmond was invited to develop a lighting approach that responds directly to the building’s spatial rhythm and organic geometry. Rather than introducing a fixed visual statement, the installations were developed as part of the interior logic, allowing light to follow structure, volume, and movement throughout the hotel.
At the centre of the experience, a bespoke KELP composition rises through the 27-metre atrium. The installation is constructed as a vertical field of hand-formed metal branches and suspended glass elements, arranged in layered clusters that shift in density as they ascend. From below, the composition reads as a continuous flow of movement; from within the atrium, it reveals itself as a detailed structure of reflections, highlights, and suspended forms. The effect is not static — it changes with perspective, daylight, and the flow of guests moving through the space.
This language continues in a more subdued register within the Parkview restaurant, where a softer composition introduces subtle points of light above the dining areas. In the guest rooms, tailored lighting elements are integrated to support intimacy and rest, each adjusted in scale and tone to match the function of the space.
At The Fontenay, light is not applied as decoration. It is embedded within the architectural experience — shaping transitions, reinforcing spatial clarity, and responding to the hotel’s connection with water, sky, and landscape.
City: Hamburg
Architect: Störmer Murphy and Partners & Matteo Thun & Partners
