Lobby (room)
A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside.[1] Sometimes referred to as a foyer, reception area or an entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cinema, etc.) adjacent to the auditorium. It may be a repose area for spectators, especially used before performance and during intermissions, but also as a place of celebrations or festivities after performance.

Since the mid-1980s, there has been a growing trend to think of lobbies as more than just ways to get from the door to the elevator but instead as social spaces and places of commerce.[2][3] Some research has even been done to develop scales to measure lobby atmosphere to improve hotel lobby design.[4] Many office buildings, hotels and skyscrapers go to great lengths to decorate their lobbies to create the right impression and convey an image.[5][6][7]
Etymology
From Medieval Latin lobia, laubia or lobium.[1]
Gallery
- 2 World Trade Center lobby interior, overlooking the elevator core and red carpet from the balcony (October 1988)
- Opera House of Paris, Palais Garnier's grand salon
- Lobby of a contemporary apartment building in Washington, D.C.
- Landgericht Berlin in Germany
- Lobby at the Sokos Hotel Torni in Tampere, Finland
- Elevator lobby at the InterContinental Hotel Singapore
- Lobby of the Crowne Plaza Vientiane hotel in Laos
- Pszczyna Castle in southwestern Poland
- Lobby of the InterContinental Mauritius Resort Balaclava Fort
- Reception area of the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C.
- Lobby of Synetic Theater in Crystal City, Arlington, Virginia, United States
References
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 836. .
- Lobbies Coming Back Into Their Own - New York Times
- Office lobbies become new battleground in landlords' fight to boost | Long Island Business News | Find Articles at BNET.com
- An atmospheric scale for the evaluation of hotel lobbies
- USATODAY.com - Hotels hope visitors check out livelier, upgraded lobby
- Lobbying for space: renovated and revived office building lobbies seek to make the segue from garages and the street inviting to office workers and pedestrians alike - Style - Brief Article | Los Angeles Business Journal | Find Articles at BNET.com
- A Building Lobby, "Way of Design, Book One" Archived 2007-01-05 at the Wayback Machine