El Dorado's Cox Communications Building

El Dorado sure are getting a lot of attention lately. This small architecture/design firm based out of Kansas City, Missouri, pride themselves in finding creative solutions for their client's needs all while maintaining an edge. Their Cox Communications building in Topeka, Kansas, is no exception.

The client had three requirements for the building: durability, energy efficiency, and a budget of $80 per square foot.
By preserving their client's requests, interesting material choices and a clever lighting solution were made. Mostly using 3500K T5HO fluorescent lamps, El Dorado were able to keep the cost of lighting the building to a minimum. However, by placing them in indirect locations such as coves within the building skin, a clean aesthetic and a soft exterior glow were created.

The firm was able to light pathways and parkways all while using an indirect source and eliminate the need for stand-alone fixtures. The muted and matte material palette of Galvalume steel, concrete and glass are well-paired with fluorescent lighting, creating a look that is affordable and modern without appearing pretentious or vain.

Peltz Theater at the Museum of Tolerance

The Peltz Theater within Simon Wiesenthal's Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, California received a needed face lift.
The lighting designers associated with the project are the notable Horton Lees Brogden Lighting Design (HLB). One of HLB's more famous projects is the award winning relighting of the famous Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles seen on the right. HLB have received a Special Citation award for the Peltz theater in this month's issue of Architectural Lighting magazine noted for their "exquisite uniform illumination and the sensitive use of color in a lighting scheme."
The real gem is the collaborative design of a coil drape metal scrim that runs along either side of the theater's wall seen here to the right. The scrim addresses both acoustic issues and creates a soothing moiré effect, enhanced by grazing color changing LED covelights. The intensity of the light cast along the scrim can be altered easily by coordination within the control system, alternating between ambient front lighting, or dramatic back lighting.

Promenade Samuel-de Champlain

The first phase of the Promenade Samuel-de Champlain, completed in June 2008, is a public parkway that runs along the riverside in Quebec, Canada. The whimsical yet direct landscape lighting for the project was designed by Éclairage Public of Canada, who have an extensive portfolio.

The firm utilized various lights from Cooper Lighting, Lumascape, Sistemalux and WE-EF. The bollards by what I believe to be Sistemalux used to light the pathway I found especially intriguing. I appreciated the approach that was taken to graze the pathway, while spike the grass with a strip of light. After reviewing the company's website, I found that they also make a wall mounted version with the same aesthetic, and offer various versions of patterning of light emission.

The minimalist fountain and the equally minimalist lighting approach with its abstract paving pattern, is said to represent thawing river ice floes. And with six more miles of the Promenade yet to be completed, I'll be looking forward to their result.

Les Bains des Docks Public Pool

Perhaps it is indeed summer outside and I'm often at work, daydreaming of being outdoors. I suppose I can't be blamed then for blogging twice in one week about some amazing swimming pools.

In this month's issue of Architectural Record, the "cover girl" is Les Bains des Docks aquatic center located in France's channel port city of Le Havre. The $29 million public pool appears awfully photogenic, with help, of course, by good material choices and smart lighting.

The water, large skylights and glossy or translucent surface materials provide a calming, and clean ambiance, almost oxymoronic to what one might expect from an affordable, public swimming pool. The only area with any color is the children's play area, seen below.

Although no lighting designer is associated with the interiors, there are feature elements that show the architectural firm, Ateliers Jean Nouvel, had an overall interest in honoring and playing with light in this project. One that especially caught my eye is a transparent film with images of the light patterns refracted in water, as you'd see while opening your eyes underneath a pool, that are attached across skylights. These cast playful patterns on the surrounding white walls and move around the room through-out the day. This mirrored motif of light strikes me as almost tongue-in-cheek, or, at the least, very playful, a rare feat where architectural lighting is concerned.

Unfortunately the only image I had of these stretched fabrics was scanned from the issue of Architectural Record below. The pattern of light is shown on the wall, and although abstract, its concept is charming.

PROJECT :: Paper Lampshades :: Part 1

As part of my application to the Masters of Architectural Lighting program in Wismar, Germany, I am required to have a portfolio showcasing my involvement and interests in lighting. I will be utilizing this blog as a place to keep notes and photos to show progress on the various concepts on which I'm working.

The first of such projects is a series of paper lamp shades I've constructed out of simple items made easily available to me at my job at John Levy Lighting Productions. Using plotter bond paper, an xacto knife and glue, the intent is to create various ornate and organic shapes that will act as diffusers for light.

Here are the initial notes on the project:
Some of the inspiration behind these lamps comes from Tord Boontje's lampshades and graphics, as seen here. However, the intent of my lampshades will be more structural and symmetrical, finding harmony in repeating patterns rather than in familiar images, as Boontje has done.



Here are two close-ups of plotted patterns that would be cut out. With AutoCAD, these images can be easily plotted at various sizes to make the piece larger or smaller. Using both the cut out shape and the background as part of the lampshade, symmetrical, intricate and organic shapes can be created.
Here is a photo of a miniature mock-up version of one of the lampshades. The intent will be to create larger variations on this theme using bond or vellum paper, and hanging as a pendant lamp with a dimmable incandescent light source. Although merely conceptual at this point, the outcome of any design is difficult to determine unless one tries.

Limerick House Spa

When I first saw these photos of the Limerick House Spa in Ireland, I realized the potential light can have in creating a dynamic environment. It would seem all too often that lighting is an afterthought, especially when it comes to pools. Within this underground retreat, however, it is made immediately clear that there had to be some clever coordination between architect and lighting designer. In order to create the ambient space, most of the light sources are concealed within architectural elements, while color changing capabilities provide versatility in mood.

The project is a 2009 International Association of Lighting Design (IALD) award winner within the residential category. Graham Rollins of Lighting Design International based out of London was the senior lighting designer. This was the press release from IALD regarding the project, offering insight and perspective.

Fiber Optic Ribbon

While flipping through a brochure from Visual Lighting Technologies based out of Lake Forest, California, I found a product that they've created called Ribbon Fiber made of flexible PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate) made in the tradition of Japanese fishing net that can be used to wrap around the countours of trees. Utilizing high intensity light and a color changing wheel, this Ribbon Fiber offers a lot of, well, flexibility.

Here are some other images of this Ribbon Fiber product used in the Roppongi Hills area of Tokyo, Japan, for a Christmas theme where a series of 14 trees were wrapped.

Let There Be Light!

With anticipation of applying to the Masters of Architectural Lighting program at the Hochschule Wismar in Wismar, Germany for the fall of 2010, I have decided to start a blog that will showcase my inspiration, concepts, projects and ideas. This is that blog.