The cleaner a ceiling looks, the harder it probably was to design above it.
We may be coordinating air conditioning, lighting, speakers, sensors, curtain tracks, and other systems, all competing for the same space.
If each system is planned separately, the ceiling gets cluttered very quickly.
So we coordinate everything early, align what needs to stay visible, and hide what can disappear.
The finished ceiling may look almost effortless.
The work behind it isn't.
A quiet ceiling is often the result of a very busy drawing.
By Roy Boustani