Plein Sud, designed by AvroKo, is the restaurant attached to the lovely Smyth Tribeca hotel. During my visit a few weeks ago, I was tempted to eat there nearly every meal just so I could ogle the beautiful decor. Like the rest of the world, I'm a sucker for raw wood, but it was the subtly faded upholstered ceiling panels that made my heart flutter. They are the perfect visual contrast to the reclaimed planks surrounding them, but more than that, they are a great sound absorber. As I admired them, I began wondering why we don't see the concept employed more often, especially in commercial and hospitality settings. Thoughts?
(Images: 1: Thomspon Hotels, 2 & 3: Melissa Hom for New York Magazine)
The Ultimate Used Furniture Cleaning Kit
Ana Creates a Community at Home
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Z2 iPod Dock and Wi...
How To Cook Fluffy, Tasty Quinoa
Recipe: Spring Fruit and Nut Tabouli
BOOO! Just kidding. :) I think it looks cool here in a restaurant, but I don't know about an actual home. I think busy ceilings are better for, like, hotel ballrooms and George Washington's living room than actual livable spaces.
Have to wonder about the dust issue.
I think they look attractive, but also wondered about the dust factor.
(I don't actually think the comments on the linked post were all that harsh.)
I agree that this is a better idea for something like a restaurant than a private home. In a restaurant, the need for sound absorption is much higher -- as is the likelihood of regular, industrial cleaning. In a home, I think they would be more likely to be an aggravator of asthma than anything else.
There's a commercial Kitchen adjacent. Not only dust. Smoke and grease, too.
Given the size of the room, the hard floor, and big windows, I can imagine something is needed for noise abatement. But not fabric on the ceiling. Not unless the owner is prepared to replace the panels as often as s/he changes the A/C filter.
Hard to say without a full-on shot or two...but I'm not wowed. Ditto the dust/cleaning concerns.
I've seen plenty of restaurants that use sound-dampening fabric panels on the ceiling to help absorb noise (it's usually when there are areas of the room paneled in echoing tin), so they've clearly found a way to deal with any cleaning issues that might arise.
Good heavens, there are an awful lot of peanut shells being thrown here. Geez.
I think it looks cool (& I'm sure all the angles have been covered for asthma AND fire, etc). I would/could do this in our home, too, if I found the right fabric. I am an ambitious asthmatic, apparently. I live in a very dusty old home that need constant cleaning & dusting (2 dogs & 2 kids don't help the situation much). I think it's a cool idea & could work. I'm willing to pitch in to start the trend!