USEFUL FACTORS FROM THE BOOK : THE ARCHITECTURE OF LIGHT

1. Book Review: The
Architecture Of
Light
SUBJECT – RAS
SUBMITTED BY –
RUCHA KULKARNI

2. The Design Mentality
 The Concepts And Processes Put Forth In This Book
Are Intended To Be Immediately Useful To Any
Designer Who Wants To Include Light As An Ally In
Design.
 One Will Find A Procedure For Developing Design
Ideas And The Visual Tools For Translating Those
Ideas
 Brainstorming Is One Of The Most Valuable Processes
In Which An “Idea Person” Can Engage.
 The Necessary First Step Of The Brainstorm Is The
Process Of Writing All Of These Ideas Down. Creating
A List Or Diagram Of Ideas Gets Them Out Of One’s
Head And Onto Paper. Emptying The Head Creates
Room For More Ideas To Germinate And Keeps The
Same Ideas From Circulating And Cluttering The
Mind. Jotting Down These Ideas Also Results In A
Permanent Record Of Them, So That None Will Be
Lost In The Dark Corridors Of The Brain.

3. BEYOND ON AND OFF: THREE
FUNDAMENTAL ASPECTS OF LIGHT
Every piece of light added to an environment should be
considered in terms of three basic properties: Intensity,
Color, and Texture
 Light Intensity: Bright vs. Dark.
 Light Color: Warm vs. Cool
 Light Texture: Directional vs. Diffuse.

4. MORE IMPACT WITH LESS LIGHT
 This focused application of “specific light
on specific surfaces” has its foundation in
four important relationships between light
and human color vision:
 1. Adaptation: adapting to bright or dark
situations;
 2. Brightness: contrast between surfaces
and their surroundings;
 3. Phototropism: attraction to lighted
surfaces and objects;
 4. Vertical vision: tendency to look around
us rather than above or below
 A summary of our lighting tactics the vision
system will adapt to make the most of low
light levels and to mitigate excessive light.
Brightness is A subjective judgment based
on contrast between neighboring surfaces.
Human beings are instinctively attracted to
bright surfaces, areas and objects. Humans
gain their definition of brightness from the
vertical surfaces around them

5. ADDING LIGHT IN LAYERS
 THE FIVE LAYER APPROACH TO LAYERING LIGHT
 Layer 1: Lighting to choreograph an experience Use light to create
goals, paths and destinations to encourage flow and movement
 Layer 2: Lighting to define mood and ambience Add intensity, color
and texture to elicit emotion and encourage a specific use in a
space
 Layer 3: Lighting to accent objects Create light that draws
attention and encourages interaction by making interesting objects
stand out even more.
 Layer 4: Lighting to reveal architecture and shape space Apply light
to the features and details of a space to enhance spatial effects and
reveal the mechanics of structure and form
 Layer 5: Lighting for tasks. Apply light to task areas to
accommodate the basic functions of space
“Focus attention and thought on one layer at a time”

6. THE COLOR SCIENCE OF LIGHT
SOURCES
In An Attempt To Limit Confusion
And Argument, We Insist On
Describing Two Unique Properties Of
Every Light Source: Color Rendering
Index And Color Temperature
 Color Rendering Index: This Term
Describes The Complexity Or
Completeness Of The Spectral
Output Of A Light Source.
 Color Temperature: This Term
Describes The Color That A Light
Source Appears To The Eye Due
To An Imbalanced Spectral
Output.

7. TEXTURES OF LIGHT
 DESIGNING WITH DIFFERENT LIGHT TEXTURES
The Fundamentals Of Making Good Luminaire
And Lamp Decisions Are As Simple As
Identifying Light Sources By The Type Of Light
They Deliver.
 The Four Levels Of Light Texture,
1. VERY DIRECTIONAL LIGHT
2. DIRECTIONAL LIGHT
3. DIFFUSE LIGHT
4. VERY DIFFUSE LIGHT
SHAPES OF LIGHT
 Light Is The Articulation Of Shapes Of Light That We Add To Our
Designed Spaces. It Is Impossible To Deliver Visual Interest In A
Space Without Making Distinct Statements Through The Shape Of
Light And Lighted Surfaces.
 The Easiest Way To Understand The Different Shapes Of Light Is To
Identify The Following Three Categories: Pools Of Light, Planes Of
Light And Glowing Objects

8. LOCATION OF THE LIGHT SOURCE
 Many Successful Lighting Designs Are, Indeed, Based On Ceiling-mounted
Down Lights As They Are Certainly A Versatile Way To Deliver Pieces Of
Architectural Light. We Will Strive For Innovation, However, By Opening
Our Mind To The Variety Of Methods For Delivering Light.
 It Is A Good Practice To Investigate Uncommon Techniques, First, To Avoid
The Tendency To Migrate Back Towards The Generic Means Of Recessed
Down Lights.
BUILDING LIGHT FROM DARKNESS
As long as we can visualize light and communicate design ideas for it, we
can find a way to implement it. Our expanded list of the controllable
aspects of light now looks like this:
1. Light intensity: Bright vs. Dark; Light Color: Warm vs. Cool;
2. Light Texture: Directional vs. Diffuse; We now have a visual
understanding of what texture means and what types of sources create
these textures.
3. Light shape: Pools of light, Planes of light, Points of light.

9. DEVELOPING LIGHTING IDEAS
Consider the following applications of light in this space:
 Accenting art on the bed wall to provide a visual focus;
 Light onto the vanity for tasks and rendering faces;
 Light onto book shelves to read text and highlight the
objects;
 Light at the bench at the foot of the bed to
accommodate dressing

10. THE KEYS TO SUCCESS IN CREATING
A LIGHT MAP:
 Think only in terms of light. Don’t worry about practicality,
constructability, luminaire location, or even the luminaire
itself. Think about the quality of light and where it goes Focus
on surfaces and objects and how they receive light
CREATING LIGHT MAPS FOR ALL 5
LAYERS
1. Light to choreograph an experience;
2. Light to affect mood;
3. Light to accent objects;
4. Light to reveal architecture;
5. Light for tasks.

11. LIGHTING CALCULATIONS
 Lumen Method Calculations Are Used For Determining
Average Light Levels In Large, Open Areas.
 Point Calculations Are Used For Determining Light Levels At
A Specific Point On An Object Or Surface.
SWITCHING, DIMMING AND
CONTROL SYSTEMS
• A lighting designer is expected to possess an intimate knowledge
of current codes, incentives and sustainability practices as well
as the technologies available.
• Constant research and staying up to date with technologies and
practices is a must

12. LUMINAIRE SYMBOLS
• These can be of any design.
They can relate literally or
loosely to the shape of the
luminaire.
• It is encouraged, however, to
draft these symbols to
represent the actual size of the
luminaire if one is drafting a
plan at ¼” = 1’-0” or ⅛” = 1’-0”
scale.
• If one is drafting a plan at a
very small scale , it is
advisable to size the symbols so
that they are clearly visible.
• Figure presents a sample legend
of commonly-used luminaire
symbols.

13. LIGHTING LAYOUTS FOR
RESIDENTIAL SPACES
 The following chapter includes lighting tactics
commonly found in typical residential spaces.
 The point of typical layouts is really just to lend
some familiarity and a jumping-off point.
 Every project has unique programming criteria
that must be thoroughly understood.
 It is good practice to dissect any and all lighting
layouts that one comes across to gain familiarity
with the various techniques available.
 The lighting layouts in this chapter are
annotated to describe what lighting principles
are at work.
 Take such “typical” layouts with a grain of
salt. Regardless of how many times thesame
spaceis lighted in the same manner, it always
behooves the designer to investigate all of the
available lighting options.

14. LIGHTING LAYOUTS FOR
COMMERCIAL SPACES
 Commercial spaces tendto be
areas where visual tasks
takepriority. This doesnot, however,
preclude their need for thoughtful
application of lightfor the sakeof
emotional state.
 It is increasingly common to find work
spaces that recognize the impact
that environmental comfort has on
productivity.
 Work environments also commonly
support multiple uses, serving workers
as they move from computer tasks to
physical layout tasks, filing, reading
and writing.

15. DESIGNING WITH NEW EYES
 Remember that as designers, we are ultimately
responsible for how people feel and, therefore,
interact with the builtenvironment around them. There
are numerous lessons to be learned from classical
design, as well as the natural world all around us.
 Look at the world withdesigner’s eyes. Always
be on the hunt for tools and techniques that you
can use in your designto impart a specific feeling or
function
• Sustainability has moved well-up the program for many of
today’s lighting projects.
• This evolution will only accelerate as electricity and other
materials become more expensive.
• All parties involved in the building process now realize that
good design means “green” design and lighting is recognized
as a key component of this.
GREEN DESIGN AND SUSTAINABILITY
THANKYOU!!