Following the focus on our considerations of materiality in the last issue, I’d like to now concentrate on how our manifesto relates specifically to contemplations of lighting. This is the third layer of the architectural concept upon which constructs of bespoke focal points are overlaid and integrated into the architectural palimpsest.
Lighting is as important to an interior, if not more so I would argue, as more tangible elements such as furniture and furnishings. It is the magic ingredient that lends depth and atmosphere to a space, changing the mood and subtly directing where our glance falls.
Lighting can be used to model a space; it manipulates how we view form, surface and texture. Our eyes register any light reflected from surfaces, refracted through transparent layers or projected onto translucent skins. Voids may be intersected by the calligraphic passage of light; upon solid form, light etches its surface. The element of lighting becomes part of the structure, being
integral to the architectural form.
Lighting follows on from the two previous layers of spatiality and materiality because it is inherently integrated into each. Light fittings may be either buried flush or completely hidden from view within the various physical elements of spatiality, floors, steps, walls and ceilings, in order to accentuate and further describe the form.
We can escalate light’s impact when we also introduce the qualities of materiality either as a surface or volume. Opaque materials such as timber, stone, concrete or metal have varying textures which may be interrogated with light projected onto their surfaces; rougher textures are revealed in detail whilst smoother planes reflect the light back into the space.
Translucent materials such as cast or etched glass, textiles or sheet marble allow light to both be reflected off it or to be refracted through it depending on their density. With the process of refraction, the deeper hidden detail of a material is exposed and will also colour the hue of the light.
Transparent materials such as glass, perspex or resin allow light to pass freely through their volume thereby illuminating the entire object, transforming them into lighting features in their own right.
In the next issue I will reveal how our manifesto relates specifically to thoughts on
bespoke focal points or furniture.
From interior design to architecture, if you have any queries or a project to which you
would like Julie to apply her structured, creative thinking, please don't hesitate to contact
her on the details opposite.
Julie Richards Architecture & Design Ltd
Tel: 01636 814624
Email: enquiry@julierichardsdesign.co.uk
Made Sep/Oct 2022 (Creating Perfect Spaces)