Case Study Phoenix Cinema

Published
February 11, 2018

Surelight LED Neon and LED Modules help Sign 2000 and HMDW Architects in the Centenary Restoration Project of the Phoenix Cinema.
In 2010 the Phoenix underwent a £1.1m renovation to celebrate the cinema’s centenary, which was led by the Phoenix Cinema Trust and funded by public donations and the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Designed by HMDW Architects, this included a new café-bar with a balcony, also restoring the original barrel-vaulted ceiling and Art Deco panels.
As part of the restoration the exterior signage and interior Art Deco wall panels were reworked and lit using Surelight LED Neon and LED Modules by signage company ‘Sign 2000’.

The Phoenix Cinema is an independent cinema in East Finchley, London, England, that was built in 1910 and opened in 1912 as the East Finchley Picturedrome. The Phoenix Cinema received a Grade II listing in 1999 after an English Heritage review, which recognised the historic importance of the original barrel-vaulted ceiling and the 1930s Art Deco decorative wall panels designed by renowned cinema interior designers Mollo & Egan.

In 2010 the Phoenix underwent a £1.1m renovation to celebrate the cinema’s centenary, which was led by the Phoenix Cinema Trust and funded by public donations and the Heritage Lottery Fund. Designed by HMDW Architects, this included a new café-bar with a balcony, also restoring the original barrel-vaulted ceiling and Art Deco panels.

As part of the restoration the exterior signage and interior Art Deco wall panels were reworked and lit using Surelight LED Neon and LED Modules by signage company ‘Sign 2000’. Signage consisted of traditional open trough letters, halo illuminated logos and exposed LED neon light tubing effects to the canopy to simulate a traditional neon feel.

What did Sign 2000 require?

Sign 2000 are one of the UK’s leading sign organisations, innovatively using lighting to make their signage stand out from the crowd. For the Phoenix Cinema project they required a product that was easy to install and low maintenance, whilst offering energy saving benefits of LED over traditional neon to visually compliment the unique art deco features.

How did Surelight achieve this?

Surelight LED Neon is of architectural grade, hard wearing and long lasting in outdoor applications. There are many benefits of using LED over traditional glass neon systems, being much easier to install and IK08 protected (against external mechanical impact) meaning it’s highly robust even under impact. Surelight XL LED neon was used to provide linear lighting to the front of the building and canopy. The built up Phoenix brand logo was halo lit with Surelight LED Modules.

“It was a huge challenge to raise the £1.1m needed to carry out the extensive repairs, but it was well worth the massive fundraising effort and disruption.
We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate 100 years of The Phoenix than to provide it with a facelift to see it into the next phase of its development.”
Paul Homer, chief executive of The Phoenix Cinema Trust.

“Sign 2000 worked closely with Surelight to recreate the traditional art deco look and feel signage at The Phoenix Cinema
The LED neon product is highly effective, low energy, and offers a number of benefits with minimal maintenance.
A fantastic bespoke project with a traditional West End high impact appearance.”
Steve Spackman, Marketing Director – Sign 2000.

Project Specifications
Architect : HMDW Architects
Location: East Finchley, London, UK
Type of project: Signage
Signage Company: Sign 2000
Client: Phoenix Cinema
Project Photographer: Lewis Ryan
Surelight LED Lighting used: XL LED Neon Flex, Continuo LED Modules

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