Light Perspectives: Between Culture and Technology

Authors: Aksel Karcher, Martin Krautter, David Kuntzsch, Thomas Schielke, Christoph Steinke, Mariko Takagi
Publishers: Tim Henrik Maack, Kay Pawlik
First Edition: 2009
ISBN: 978-3-9813216-1-6

More info after the break.

What are the intrinsic qualities of light, and how are the techniques and design approaches implemented in architecture? How are abstract lighting concepts conveyed, and how far is our perception of light rooted in the biological and cultural history of human evolution?

This book endeavours to identify terms and standards which relate to qualities in architectural lighting. It uses this identification to promote communication and aid dialogue between designers and engineers, building owners and planners, professionals and laymen. The 21 chapters are arranged in three sections covering the actual qualities of light, the relationship between light and space and, finally, the dimension of light as it relates to culture. In each of the chapters, paired terms explore the respective design dimension of light. Using texts, photos, computer graphics and drawings, the team of authors investigates each pair of terms beginning with the original cultural and historical context, moving onto didactic material on perception, lighting design and lighting technology and concluding with case studies in virtual architectural situations.

Contents

Light

Light and dark
Diffuse and directed
Warm and cold
Radiance and illumination
Brilliance and glare
Natural and artificial
White and coloured

Space

Vertical and horizontal
Square and round
Looking in the looking out
Foreground and background
Wide and focussed
Small and large
Spatial patterns and lighting patterns