The ceiling: a sometimes forgotten canvas that, when left blank during events, can be a missed opportunity to immerse guests further into the experience. However, it's not just about catching guests’ eyes and snapping a photo. The idea of looking up actually has a positive impact on the human psyche, notes Grant Dudson, experiential creative director and head artist at event design firm Studio Grant Harvey.
“Like most people, I've always witnessed a palpable change in awareness when I look up,” Dudson said, noting that continuing an event’s design both outward and upward “helps us visibly engulf the entirety of the space around us.” The concept was coined by positive psychology coach Paul Conway as “skychology.”
At its most basic definition, skychology is “the study of the relationship between looking at the sky and well-being,” according to Conway’s website. So, “the notion of looking up in a space at something visually beguiling and wonderful can offer a similar psychological response,” Dudson said. “There's a reason vast ceilings have been punctuated with opulent chandeliers for as long as we know.”
However eye-catching a chandelier still is to many guests, as skychology pushes its way into the event profs dictionary, innovative event professionals have already begun expanding on the concept.
Take it from these 15 examples of ceiling event decor that have made guests look up…
![The Kentucky Derby’s Trifecta Gala](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/20240503_Ebony_Trifecta_0711.66390efb9ffa8.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![A custom-lit “The Trifecta” sign served as the event space’s centerpiece in a nod to the company that hosts the event, which is headed by retired NBA guard Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman and his family, including his three children. The sign’s neon lighting was reflected onto the tent’s ceiling for an added, awe-inspiring lighting effect.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/IMG_0318.66390efbd5e03.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Tudor Watch’s Launch Event](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/IMG_7352.66390e3c0b0dc.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Robin Hood’s Benefit Gala](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/20230515_Robin_Hood_Gala_054.6467bcb96ae57.66390ed5126e6.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![In a unique bid to get its guests—and the rest of New York City—to look up, Robin Hood had the top of the Empire State Building shining in green on the night of its 2023 gala last May.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/20230515_Robin_Hood_Gala_224.6467bcbe9b91c.66390f5190967.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![California Science Center’s Discovery Ball](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/DISCOVERY_23_NFP090__2_.6449656974526.66390ef306c6c.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Walt Disney Company’s Post-Emmys Celebration](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/115_20240115Sterling_TWDCEmmys2023_DSC05853_copy.65d3a4bdec2b1.66391057df3d3.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Dr. Martens’ ‘Made Strong’ Pop-Up](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/3_PNK_0630.6555243381abd.66391041aec0c.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Mastercard’s ‘Secret Garden’ at Grammy House](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/CMR_5612_v2_Large.65c4167e5e65c.66390f21df386.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s Ode to the Chicago Skyline](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/Steppenwolf_Gala_2023_Decor_6._Photo_by_Kyle_Flubacker.646b87893e756.66390fb7d6a67.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![STEEZY’s Coachella Shoe Box Activation](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/STEEZY_SELECTS_7606.662c15aaaa42f.66390fd21c0a9.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![NYLON House at Coachella](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/2024.NYLON.14.661ef1701878a.663910045bfc7.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Engage!18's Great White North Gala](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/CARLA_TEN_EYCK_ENGAGE_BANFF_GALA_DETAILS_64_copy.657b673579f58.6639109eb2c3c.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![The Recording Academy’s Grammy Celebration](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/PF1_2513_mKROsnyx.65c17960d7ba2.66390fb264d1d.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![Netflix Emmys Celebration](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/Screenshot_2024_02_19_at_10.56.46___AM.65d3a4c5051ba.66391058407ce.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![A '90s-Themed Corporate Affair](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/MSP_Preview_0049_copy.64ff7cd886c7e.66390f22d0158.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)
![WME’s Oscars Party](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/05/Screenshot_2024_03_18_at_11.23.20___AM.65f8867363a06.6639108930033.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&q=70&w=400)