In his lecture titled “Lighting as an Integral Part of Architecture,” (1952) Kelly goes into his three “elemental kinds of light” that still act as the heart of lighting design today.
1. Focal glow – Today, this kind of light is referred to as task lighting. It points out important elements and draws attention to areas, all while making it easier to see.
“…directive, creates a brighter center; tells us what to look at, organizes, marks the important element.” – Richard Kelly on focal glow.
2. Ambient luminescence – This is also known as general or ambient lighting. It’s the background lighting that illuminates and entire space. It should be even and uniform, casting no shadows and makes people in the space feel safe.
“It [ambient luminescence] minimizes form and bulk. It minimizes the importance of all things and people. It can suggest the freedom of space and can suggest infinity.” – Richard Kelly on ambient luminescence.
3. Play of brilliants – Also known as accent lighting, this layer can by dynamic and colorful and it aims to stimulate people and emotions.
“…excites the optic nerves, and in turn stimulates the body and spirit, quickens the appetite, awakens curiosity, sharpens the wit.” – Richard Kelly on play of brilliants.
After discussing his theoretical statement for lighting, he goes into the “specific qualities attributed to it [light] by the regular occurrence of specific effects,” The first quality is intensity, or the “total quantity of light flux moving towards a surface.” The light arriving at the surface is usually measured in footcandles or lux. The second is brightness, which is the amount of “light per unit area reflected from or emitted through a surface or area.”
The third quality is diffusion. Diffusion is the reflection of light from a surface such that an incident ray is reflected at many angles rather than just one angle, creating a uniform light spread. Kelly describes this quality as being “best illustrated by an open white sandy beach on an over-all cloudy day.” A large source of light shouldn’t produce any shadows, and a small light source will produce sharp shadows.
His fourth quality is spectral color, which is color that is evoked by a single wavelength of light in the visible spectrum, or by a narrow band of wavelengths (monochromatic light). The fifth and sixth are direction and motion. Direction refers to the direction of light relative to eyelevel, as motion refers to the “movement of light, real and implied.” When observing the direction of lighting, studies have shown that the placement of light sources can make people feel different ways. Kelly describes that lighting placed above eyelevel can produce a feeling of restraint to create a “formal atmosphere.” But lighting placed below eyelevel can create a feeling of “individual human importance,” creating an informal atmosphere.
How Light and Architecture Work Together
Before we get into how light and architecture impact one another, it’s important to know the main categories of buildings and what each try to accomplish with lighting. The first group (public buildings) is comprised of sports arenas, libraries, hospitals, etc. These types of buildings are more concerned with providing the right amount of light for tasks and other types of events. Sporting events like football and baseball require the right amount of light so the players on the field can see and so the spectators can see the field. It’s also important for when spectators go to and from their seats and navigate the rest of the arena/stadium. It’s the same concept with libraries and hospitals. In libraries, occupants need to have the proper light levels to read, write and find books on shelves, while hospitals need high light levels for doctors and nurses to successfully do their jobs.
The second group (official buildings) is comprised of mainly warehouses and office buildings. Their number one concern with lighting is the efficiency. With the large energy consumption of those properties, they can’t afford to spend a fortune on lighting and the electricity it consumes. And with green building trends on the rise, it’s important to have energy-efficient and sustainable lighting.
The third and final group (specialized buildings) is comprised of museums, theaters, casinos, etc. These buildings rely heavily on atmosphere and the experiences they can provide. They are concerned with enhancing the appearance of architectural spaces and elements. When people go to a theater to see a play or musical, they are expecting an experience before the show even begins. They want to see a beautiful chandelier welcoming them in the lobby, lavish wall sconces lighting the hallway to their seats, and the area around the stage to be lit to accentuate statues, pillars and other architectural features.
Lighting Spatial Borders
To enhance architectural elements and evoke emotions, it’s important to understand spatial borders and how to properly light them. To enhance vertical borders for example, light should be directed towards wall surfaces. If there is a wall that is a different texture, or simply one that the occupants should notice more than others, wall washing is a great tool (Image A). It will draw attention to the wall and make it appear as its own architectural element instead of a piece of an entire room. This can be used in retail locations to draw more attention to wall displays.
Horizontal borders can be emphasized by illuminating the floor and ceiling. By lighting the floor, objects and pedestrian surfaces are lit. This is particularly important in dark spaces such as movie theaters and night clubs. The ambient and accent light levels are so low that not enough light reaches the floor, thus requiring the floor to be illuminated (Image B). Executed properly, this can act as task and accent lighting. If light needs to be diffused in the room, lighting the ceiling can be a successful strategy. It helps create a uniformity of light throughout the room and provides proper light levels without the use of direct light on objects.
After vertical and horizontal borders have been lit, it’s important to not forget about lighting architectural elements. Lighting pillars, archways, textures, etc. can draw attention away from a room as a whole, and force the eye to focus on the illuminated architectural elements (Image C). In a room full of colors and architectural elements, it’s sometimes difficult to make certain areas stand out. Light can help with this problem by making those elements more obvious. This tactic can be used for interior and exterior lighting applications.
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