E
Lichtbericht 82
Published in May 2007
Coal washery at Zollverein
In its former life, the Zollverein colliery at Essen was the epitome of
industrial efficiency and rationalthinking. The IBA Emscherpark
international building exhibition
(1989-99) gave the site a new lease
of life: it now stands as a symbol
and focal point of the successful
structural change that the RuhrValley region, once so characterised
by heavy industry, has undergone.
Following an extensive conversion
by the joint venture of OMA and
Böll & Krabel, the largest individual
building at Zollverein, the coal
washery, has now become a visitor
centre, museum and exhibition hall.
About this issue
Contents
Introduction
1
About this issue
2
Keylights
4
Bright prospects
Light & Technology
Report
6
Coal Washery, Essen
The coal washery, the heart of the
­disused Zollverein colliery, is both a
symbol and a focal point of structural
change in Germany’s Ruhr-Valley
region.
10
The essence of tomorrow
The author Holm Friebe, on the inaugural exhibition at Essen’s coal washery:
ENTRY2006
12
Entry Paradise Pavilion
Computer-generated evolution: a
dynamically lit environment whets the
appetite for the architecture of the
future.
22
Light Server 64+
The user-friendly ERCO solution for
large DALI installations
24
Focus
Seeing and perceiving: the effects of
perception in the practice of lighting
design
25
Double focus
Seeing and perceiving: the theory of
perception
26
A villa sets sail
Welcome to the captain’s bridge: the
seaward orientation is the theme of
this villa, built by Lord Norman Foster
in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat
30
Rembrandt: the quest of a genius
An exhibition at Berlin’s Kulturforum
Gallery
32
Iittala Flagship �������
Store��, ���������
Amsterdam
Scenographic lighting with Light System
DALI lends dramatic qualities to the
Iittala store.
34
Ascot
The venue of the famous racecourse has
been given a £200M facelift with a new
modern grandstand, and refurbished
public entertainment areas.
36
Backlights
Projects
Background
16
Richard Kelly: Defining a Modern
Architecture of Light
An essay by Margaret Maile on the
­pioneer of architectural lighting
ERCO Lichtbericht
Imprint
Publisher: Tim H. Maack
Editor in Chief: Martin Krautter
Design/Layout: Christoph Steinke, Simone Heinze
Printing: Mohn Media Mohndruck GmbH, Gütersloh
1028696000
© 2007 ERCO
Tim Henrik Maack
Everything must change, so that it stays the
same. These words might well describe our
design brief for the Lichtbericht 82. The previously familiar bilingual version has now reverted
to a monolingual format, but published in six
different languages. As a result, there is more
room for editorial contents and the layout has
been thoroughly reworked.
In terms of content, the Lichtbericht is now
more extensively subdivided into various column
headings. From now on each Lichtbericht will
feature an extensive project study in the “Report”
column, containing more information from
very different points of view. This issue features
contributions about the coal washery at the
Zoll­verein colliery and the ENTRY international
design exhibition held there.
In future, the “Background” column will
often contain contributions that are more freely
written, project-independent and quite heavily
text-based. For example, this issue has a feature
on the patriarch of architectural lighting, the
American lighting designer Richard Kelly, whose
work still exerts a fundamental and substantial
influence on contemporary lighting design.
Basic technological principles, product know­
ledge and teaching on light will be discussed
in the “Light & Technology” column. In this
issue there is an article on the Light Server 64+
(which allows DALI projects with more than
64 participants to be actualised) as well as two
rather more fundamental articles on perception
and lighting design.
Last but not least, in the accustomed manner,
there will of course be many interesting examples of architectural lighting from all around
the world, now integrated within the “Projects”
column. The cross section ranges from Iittala’s
flagship store to Ascot racecourse.
In summary, it can be said that the new
Lichtbericht is faithful to the old, but also accommodates the need for greater informative content covering all aspects of light and lighting
technology.
Photographs (Page): �����������������������������
Frieder Blickle (3), Richard
Bryant/arcaid.co.uk (25-29), Charles Crowell, Black Star
(3), Ezra Stoller © ESTO (20–21), Bernd Hoff (24, 36),
Alexan­dra Lechner (3), Thomas Mayer (U1, 2–3, 6–15,
24), Rudi Meisel (34–35), Thomas Pflaum (4–5),
Alexander Ring (22–23), Tomas Södergren (37),
The Richard Kelly Grant (16–21), Dirk Vogel (1, 2,
32–33, U4), Sabine Wenzel (30–31), Edgar Zippel (2)
Translation: Lanzillotta Translations, Düsseldorf
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 Keylights
Düsseldorf
Known as the “Kö”, Düsseldorf’s
Königsallee has worldwide fame
as an exclusive high street. The
Eickhoff fashion house is one of
the top addresses with a long
tradition here. Its brands include
designers such as Dior, Gucci,
Armani or Dolce & Gabbana. The
capacious windows set the standard with decoration and lighting.
The professional tools for this scenic ­lighting are Parscan spotlights.
Eickhoff shop windows
www.eickhoff.eu
Stockholm
The Kungsträdgården is one of
the picture-postcard scenes of
the Swedish capital. Splendid
Wilhelminian palaces line the ­
park-like promenade. To illuminate
these historical facades with uniform, colour-neutral and energyefficient lighting, Beamer spotlights and Parscoop floodlights for
metal halide lamps have now been
mounted on the lampposts along
the entire course of the street.
Stockholm
The new Stockholm showrooms
from Kvadrat combine Scandinavian loft aesthetics with perfect
lighting technology: tracks with
spotlights and wallwashers from
the Optec product range ensure
optimum conditions for presenting
the high-quality domestic textiles
from Denmark.
Kvadrat Showroom
Architect: Ronan &
Erwan Bouroullec, Paris
Lighting design:
Vincent Muracciole, Paris
www.kvadrat.dk
Westpark Lighting
Lighting design: Forum InterArt,
Uwe Kiwitt, Dortmund
Stockholm
Hand-tied carpets don’t have to
be staid and middle-class: as is
proven by The Rug Company,
an English firm whose splendid
carpet-artworks are styled by
well-known fashion and interior
designers. In the new showroom
in the centre of Stockholm, the
designers opted for downlights
and wallwashers from the Quadra
range.
The Rug Company Showroom
Architect: Guy Stansfeld Architects
Limited, London
www.therugcompany.info
ERCO Lichtbericht 82
Audi Forum
Architect: Oettle Design, Munich;
CR Studio Architects, New York
www.audi.com
Zuchwil (Switzerland)
Although the shape of this church
reminds some people of a whale,
the two concrete shells actually
form a gesture holding the church
interior like two protective hands.
The New Apostolic Church in the
small Swiss town has dared to go
for contemporary architecture
– with success. Downlights with
halogen or metal halide lamps are
perfectly integrated into the building using concrete housings.
Neuapostolische Kirche (New
Apostolic Church), Zuchwil
Architect: smarch architekten, Bern
Cologne
The office furnishings branch converges at the Orgatec trade fair on
the banks of the Rhine every two
years. After a difficult period, the
industry is again gaining impetus.
A series of small but refined and
design-conscious firms from Spain
now make a joint-presentation at
the SIDI stand (Selección Internacional de Diseño) – under the light
of TM spotlights on suspended
track structures.
SIDI trade fair stand at Orgatec
2006
Stand architecture: Stefano Colli,
Barcelona
Lighting design: Stefano Colli &
SIDI Team
www.sidi.es
Catedral La Seo, Capilla de San
Pedro
Lighting design: Feliciano Fuster
Kungsträdgårdsgatan
Architect: Svante Forsström
Arkitekter, Stockholm
Lighting design: Claes Möller
­Ljusbyggarna, Stockholm
Dortmund
Since Dortmund made the transition from industrial conurbation
to service-provision sector, the
working-class atmosphere in traditional areas such as the Weststadt
also changed. Residents of very
different origins mix freely here
and in the summer they take over
the public space of Westpark with
its green expanses and ancient tree
lines. Sensitively designed scenic
lighting using Tesis in-ground
luminaires satisfies the needs of
this application, adding much to
the quality and safety of a stay in
the park.
Palma de Mallorca
Contemporary art in an over
700-year-old cathedral: in the
past few years the Balearic artist
Miquel Barceló has installed a
ceramic relief measuring 300m2
in the St. Peter’s Chapel of the
Cathedral of Palma de Mallorca.
The artwork is illuminated by Tesis
in-ground wallwashers and Stella
spotlights.
New York City
“Vorsprung durch Technik”– this
advertising slogan has long been
understood in the USA without
need for translation. With the
new Audi Forum in Manhattan,
the German premier automobile
marque aims to further strengthen
its presence in America. The spacious showrooms are located on
the corner of 47th Street and Park
Avenue. Spotlights from the Stella
and Optec product groups provide
the optimum scenic lighting for
the vehicles.
Barcelona
The Catalan top pastry chef Oriol
Balaguer has made the manufac­
ture of chocolate into an art form.
He contrasts the opulence of his
exquisite culinary creations with
minimalist packaging and an
uncompromising modern interior
to his boutique at the Pza. San
­Gregorio Taumaturgo, 2. Under the
brilliant light of the Castor spotlights the chocolates look extremely
appetising and the work surfaces
shine.
New York City
When it comes to fitting out the
stores of its globally expanding
chain, the Italian jeans and sports­
wear label Diesel has long been
relying on ERCO lighting tech­
nology. And the New York store
at 135 Spring Street in SoHo, is
no different: the lighting for the
attractive premises with its historic cast-iron columns is provided
by Optec spotlights and Gimbal
­reces­sed directional luminaires for
metal halide lamps.
Oriol Balaguer
Architect and lighting design:
GCA architects, Barcelona
www.oriolbalaguer.com
Diesel Store
Architect: Diesel Interior Design
Department, Molvena
www.diesel.com
Frankfurt
A jewel of 1920’s classic-modern
architecture – in the form of the
restaurant for the swimming baths
"Waldschwimmbad" – has gone
unnoticed for many years in the
Frankfurt suburb of Neu-Isenburg.
Following extensive renovations
in keeping with its listed building
status and after elegant extension
work and new indoor and outdoor
lighting from ERCO, the restaurant
is once again resplendent in its
new finery. The new name also
pays tribute to the Bauhaus artist
Lyonel Feininger.
Abu Dhabi
This hotel of superlatives is held to
be the largest and most luxurious
hotel in the world. Under the management of the Kempinski hotel
chain, state guests and members
of the jet set find the ultimate in
luxury here. With 302 rooms and
92 suites, the entire complex is
almost one kilometre long. The
diameter of the large atrium dome
measures 42 metres and its surface
is decorated with silver and gold
mosaics. ERCO supplied several
thousand downlights and other
luminaires to show off such fabulous opulence to its best advantage.
Hotel Emirates Palace
Architect: Wimberly Allison Tong &
Goo
Lighting design: DHA Design,
­London and Lighting Design
­International, London
www.emiratespalace.com
Restaurant Lyonel
Architect: Tom Eisenbach, Frankfurt
www.restaurant-lyonel.de
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 Bright prospects
Situation Kunst, Bochum
Architects: Soan Architekten (Gido Hülsmann,
Bochum; Dirk Boländer, Warburg)
Photographer: Thomas Pflaum, Castrop-Rauxel
www.situation-kunst.de
ERCO Lichtbericht 82
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 Coal Washery, Essen
Zollverein 2001 Master Plan: Rem Koolhaas,
Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA)
Coal washery conversion: joint venture of OMA
and the architectural design offices of Böll &
Krabel, Essen
Lighting design: Licht Kunst Licht, Bonn/Berlin
Project team: Nicole Kober, Stefan Hofmann
Photos: Thomas Mayer
The coal washery, the heart of the disused
Zollverein colliery, is both a symbol and a
focal point of structural change in Germany’s
Ruhr-Valley region. From a heavy industrial
complex to a world ­heritage site, it is now a
venue for the architecture and design of the
future.
In the years 1928-1932, Fritz Schupp and Martin
Kremmer constructed their Pit No. XII at Zoll­
verein, thereby creating not only one of the
world’s greatest and most modern coal mines
of its time, but also a masterpiece of industrial
architecture. The complex’s strictly geometrical layout of frugal individual cubes remains
impres­sive to this day with its rational aesthetics and spartan use of forms. The extraction
and subsequent processing of the coal in the
coal washery and coking plant ended in 1986
and 1993 respectively. There was practically no
public access to the entire complex during the
pit’s working life. It was only after the site was
re­developed during the IBA Emscherpark international building exhibition prior to 1999 and
had become a listed building in 2000, and after
the entire complex was included in UNESCO’s
world cultural heritage listing in 2001, that
the way was finally paved for rededicating this
impressive industrial location.
As early as 1996, the ��������������������
Design Zentrum Nord­
rhein Westfalen��������������������������������
moved into the colliery boiler
house, whose interior was redesigned by Lord
Norman Foster and the Essen-based offices of
Böll & Krabel. Future-orientated companies have
also successfully moved in; creative companies
and design agencies have taken up tenancies in
offices, studios and workshops at Pit Shaft XII.
In a move aimed at safeguarding the future of
high quality design, the Zollverein School of
Management and Design began its first semester this year with 18 students. The Japanese
architectural group SANAA received the keys
for their unusual new premises – the first new
building on the colliery site for fifty years – at a
handover in July 2006.
Rem Koolhaas and his renowned Office for
Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) presented a
master plan for the Zollverein colliery in 2001 in
order to codify what the crucial design criteria
are in a continual, careful development process.
One of the largest individual buildings, the coal
washery of Pit Shaft XII, has been renovated
since 2003 in a joint venture between OMA and
the architectural design offices of Böll & Krabel
and was presented to a wide audience in the
context of ENTRY2006. For 100 days from the
26th of August to the 3rd of December 2006,
the thoughts of architects and visitors revolved
around the questions of the design of tomorrow.
The Ruhr Museum and the Visitor Centre of the
Zollverein pit will move into the former coal
washery when the ENTRY2006 draws to a close.
The entire usable area of approx. 7,500m2 is
spread over three levels. Modern fixtures and
fittings make an attractive contrast to the
rudimentary industrial architecture with all its
visible constructional elements and technical
ERCO Lichtbericht 82
www.zollverein.de
Having proven itself
­during the ENTRY2006,
the new infrastructure of
the coal washery will host
the Ruhr Museum as of
2008 – and act as a welcoming portal for visitors
to the Ruhr-Valley from
all around the world.
equipment. Spacious halls are interspersed with
surprising little closets, while bold colours add
highlighting features, such as the intensively
orange fluorescent main staircase. But, the most
spectacular – and hotly debated – incursion into
the substance of the building is its new access: a
gigantic, external escalator bringing the visitor
first of all to the Visitor Centre’s “Level 24” –
named after the 24 metre height difference. The
tour starts here and descends down through the
exhibition levels, allowing the visitors to follow
the “way of the coal”, metaphorically speaking,
despite the fact that the original, vertical spatial
structure of the former coal silo has largely been
replaced by the new, horizontally orientated
exhibition levels. The clear separation between
original and additional sections of the building
can be easily seen with the newly constructed
facade perfectly balancing modern functionality
with historical monument preservation. Above
all, the way that the conversion puts minimum
distance between the historical building substance and the visitors goes to make the Essen
coal washery a milestone of the re-usage of
­relics from the industrial age.
Initially hotly debated,
now widely loved: the
ride on the giant escalator makes an exciting
prelude for every visit to
the coal washery.
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 The qualities of the
cool, indirect light are
clearly distinguished
from the warmer halogen
tone of the direct, aimed
light. The lighting of the
defunct machinery is low
in shadows to avoid overdramatisation.
The lighting concept of the coal washery
For the ambient lighting in the building, the
lighting designers from Licht Kunst Licht came
up with what is known as “lighting lines” – a
suspended sheet-steel profile, the design of
which draws from the familiar canon of the
steel skeleton construction used here. It serves
as a holder for acoustic and communication
elements, as a carrier for indirect illumination
components and as the installation level for
ERCO 3-circuit track.
The deliberately chosen cold-white light
colour of the T16 fluorescent lamps fitted in the
indirect units produces a uniform diffuse ceiling of light, which is reminiscent of the original
combination of the daylight ingressing from
the side and the general-diffuse fluorescent
lamps of the industrial lighting. Dimmable electronic ballasts allow the luminance levels to be
adjusted to the different room sizes. The warmtoned direct components combine to give a
cumulative effect without being dramatic. The
illuminated objects are lit with reduced quantities of light from at least four positions in order
to avoid heavy shadow. This system will also
allow future lighting tasks to be tackled with
flexibility: be it traffic zones, event areas or an
exhibition area. The tracks are equipped from
the large stock of ERCO Optec spotlights featuring different lamps, wattages and light intensity
distributions.
The roof construction on top of the coal
washery is a special architectural feature as it
now contains a hall for events. The unconcealed
ceiling area accommodates all the relevant
building service components, such as ventilation, lighting and event equipment, plus multimedia elements. Parscan spotlights for tungsten
halogen lamps are aimed vertically downwards
and can be switched and dimmed in groups as
required in order to provide optimum lighting
for any kind of event.
Large dimensioned industrial architecture
and miniature exhibition structures; diffuse
daylight and concentrated artificial light. The
old and the new coupling memories of the dirty,
arduous and dangerous working world of yesterday’s industry with the vision of tomorrow’s
highly motivated designers – all this presented
in full focus here at the Zollverein colliery.
Downward-aimed Parscan
spotlights provide flexible
lighting in the hall’s interior, while the continuous
row of downlights around
the eaves produces a carpet of light on the terrace, allowing the glass
wall to appear transparent even after dark.
The lighting lines combine
installation and lighting
functions, plus their tech­nical look allows them
to blend seamlessly into
the surroundings of the
former industrial complex. The integrated track
holds spotlights and
wallwashers from the
Optec series.
Spatial dramaturgy:
­visitors leaving the functionally illuminated exhibition areas step into the
glowing orange world
of the newly added and
effectively illuminated
staircase.
Through its panoramic
windows the event hall
on the roof of the coal
washery affords mag­­nifi­cent views across the
­Zoll­verein colliery site
and the entire region.
Licht Kunst Licht – the team
The lighting design office of Licht Kunst
Licht, headed up by Prof. Andreas Schulz,
was founded in Bonn and Berlin in 1992
and is one of the big names in its field in
Germany today. Amongst many other
famous buildings, the company’s reference list includes the Federal Chancellery
in Berlin, the Novartis Campus in Basle,
the Jahrhunderthalle in Bochum and the
Max Ernst Museum in Brühl near Cologne.
The Zollverein project has already kept the
office’s designers busy for over two years:
Licht Kunst Licht teamed up with a landscape architect and a graphic designer
to win the competition for the design
of the Zollverein park’s outdoor site at
the start of 2005. In a parallel move, the
contract for the lighting design of the
coal washery also went to Bonn. Project
team members Nicole Kober (above) and
Stefan Hofmann worked on the complex
task of designing and implementing a
stringent and economical concept for the
lighting of this extremely heterogeneous
architecture.
www.lichtkunstlicht.com
The concrete arches
­above the industrial rail
tracks become an arcade
of light: effectively illuminated with Cylinder
surface-mounted downlights from ERCO’s outdoor luminaire range.
ERCO Lichtbericht 82
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 The essence of tomorrow
Surreal: the lighting
effects using direct light
contrasted with the
room’s raw industrial
surfaces increase the
aura of the exhibits.
The author Holm Friebe, on the inaugural
exhibition at Essen’s coal washery:
ENTRY2006 (26 August – 3 December 2006)
Architecture, spectacular
enough even for the tabloids: Francesca Ferguson,
Head of the Swiss Architectural Museum and
co-curator of ENTRY, is
delighted at the report.
Visions for the tomorrow
of yesterday: in addition to
contemporary approaches,
the “Open House” exhibition of the Vitra Museum
also presents a retrospective of utopian dwellings
of the modern age.
Zollverein as a centre
of attraction: the RuhrValley seeks its future
in the much-quoted
“Creative Industries”
and its young, academic
environment.
Sprawling, subversive
structures take over the
area: impressions from
the exhibition section
“Talking Cities”.
The third millennium is ‘up’ but is it
­‘running?’ Our future is being made – the
question is by whom?
Since designers already act as mediators
between the different worlds of experts, there is
much to say for giving them a key role in shaping the immediate and mid-term future – and to
have them cushion this process as humanely as
possible. Yet at the same time, within the trade,
one also misses a little of the pioneering spirit
and the readiness to leave traditional terrain
and face the new challenges, while the decisive
formulations are undertaken in other fields, e.g.
by technology and the natural sciences. Back
in 2004, the Canadian designer, Bruce Mau,
attempted to use his “Massive Change: The
Future of Global Design” project as a vehicle to
persuade his partners to commit to imminent
massive change by ‘signing up’ to the resultant extended understanding of design – which
only in the rarest of cases had any connection
with interior design. But the future should be all
about how scientific findings and technological
innovations can be used for improving human
co-existence. One of the core messages is that,
in most cases these days, design is and remains
invisible – until it goes wrong, of course.
The baton was taken up by the Essen-based
exhibition project “ENTRY2006: Wie werden
wir morgen leben?“ (“ENTRY2006: How will we
live tomorrow?”). For 100 days at the end of
last year, this was a guest exhibition at the Zoll­
verein’s coal washery, a conversion by Rem Koolhaas, where it not only acted as the prelude to
the imminent Cultural Capital Year – 2010, but
10 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
also thoroughly sounded out the future areas
and possibilities for design and architecture.
The exhibition’s slogan, which will presumably
outlive the event itself, is “B.A.N.G. Design” – the
very name expresses the optimistic possibility
of a new start or a new Big Bang in the cosmos
of design.
Actually, B.A.N.G. is an acronym for Bits,
Atoms, Neurons and Genes, i.e. those microscopic and sub-microscopic levels on which
and from which we expect the future quantum
leaps and fundamental innovations to be made
in that laborious process we call “progress”. As
a matter of fact, the fusion of technology and
biology – anticipated long ago in the relevant
Sci-Fi novels as “Wetware” – is advancing at
breathtaking pace. As is impressively shown by
one part of the Essen exhibition entitled “Entry
Paradise”, curated by Werner Lippert and Peter
Wippermann: robots are becoming more and
more like humans and at the same time mortal
flesh is being up-graded by technological means,
with the two sides presumably meeting somewhere in the middle. The progress of information technology promises more artificial intelligence even in this century, while biotechnology
and medicine keep tinkering around at trying to
make man immortal.
However, despite this promising virgin territory, we must not lose sight of the fact that the
most serious problems of design are currently
still located on the macro level. Most of these
problems concern the fact that people have
bodies – bodies that have to be somewhere and
preferably somewhere comfortable. Architec-
ture, the cityscape, the public and private spaces
still remain the backdrop against which the
entire tragedy and comedy of human existence
is played out. This compels us to think about
how technological progress can also be transformed into social progress, resulting in new
forms of shared habitation right here and now
– and also spread across the entire planet.
These issues are the focus of the second part
of the exhibition, “Talking Cities” curated by
Francesca Ferguson and her “Urban Drift” office.
The exhibits assumed here under the subject
matter of cities do not so much reflect the engineer’s viewpoint for technological advances and
pioneering achievements as the perspective of
those immediately affected by progress, globalisation and urban change. The “Micropolitics of
Urban Space” tells of smaller and more concrete
utopias, frequently in the sense of a highly
imaginative appropriation and changed usage
of public space and architecture that could well
be dubbed “Guerrilla Urbanism”. This begins with
the striking and insightful proposal of industrial
designer Andreas Bergmann to press building
site railings into benches using a simple metalforming process. It does not stop with the “Land
for free” initiative, whereby parcels of land on
the industrial wastelands of the Ruhr-Valley
area will be given away until 2010. The aim here
is to attract settlers into exchanging their loft
apartments in New York or Berlin for a hillside
location on a former slagheap now populated
with birch trees. All of a sudden we have arrived
back at the here and now, in the middle of the
structural change of the Ruhr-Valley region. We
are back in Essen, the city that is transforming
itself into a location for creative industry, lasting
well beyond the imminent Cultural Capital Year.
Back in the Zollverein mine, which was saved
from simply being conserved as an historical
monument to a world heritage site, transforming this ”junk space” into an open location of the
future, thanks to the successful intervention of
Koolhaas and his office OMA.
Tradition is seen here not so much as a dead
weight but as a source of inspiration, as Andrej
Kupetz, President of the Zollverein School of
Management and Design makes clear in the
accompanying booklet for Entry Paradise: “In
terms of Zollverein’s future, we have to consider
it a stroke of pure luck of the changing values of
society, that the more we post-industrial people
are liberated from physical labour and industrial
production processes, the more we discover
the romanticism of the mechanised age, a time
that smelt of machine oil and tasted of coal
dust.” These sentiments are most beautifully
summed up by the Norwegian artist Sissel Tolaas
in her contribution to “Talking Cities”, which
simultaneously also links the molecular level
of B.A.N.G. Design with the urban macro-level.
For her olfactory installation, she has captured
the charismatic fragrances of different cities,
synthesised them in the lab and bottled them in
scent bottles. In addition, she has had a perfume
called “Essense” produced for her in a limited
production run of 200 bottles especially for
the Essen exhibition. In very post-modern and
nostalgic fashion, it smells of coal dust and rust.
Like Proust’s Madeleine cakes, the homemade
cakes that conjured up childhood memories, it
evokes immediate images of the old Ruhr-Valley
in the visual cortex of our Wetware.
Literature
Massive Change – A Manifesto for the Future of
Global Design (Bruce Mau, Phaidon)
A contribution from the
Cooper Hewitt Museum,
New York: “Second Skin”
is dedicated to new
materials for furniture,
fashion and architecture.
Entry Paradise – Neue Welten des Designs
(Gerhard Seltmann and Werner Lippert (Publ.),
Birkhäuser)
Talking Cities – The Micropolitics of Urban
Space / Die Mikropolitik des urbanen Raums
(Francesca Ferguson & Urban Drift Productions
Ltd. (Publ.), Birkhäuser)
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 11
Entry Paradise Pavilion
Computer-generated evolution: a dynamically lit environment whets the appetite for
the architecture of the future.
“How will we live tomorrow?” This is the central
theme of the ENTRY2006 exhibition. Designers
and architects from more than 20 countries
gave very different answers to this in the form of
innovative products, materials, clothes, houses
and ideas. With its visionary exhibits, the exhibition in the former coal washery on the world
heritage site of the Zollverein in Essen gave a
fantastic glimpse of the future. The “Entrée” to
the various themed areas took the form of the
“ENTRY Paradise” theme world. This took the
visitors on a journey from the classical industrial
and emotional design of the 20th century to the
future design of Bits, Atoms, Neuro technology
and Genetic engineering – known as “B.A.N.G.
Design” for short. Architect Chris Bosse from
PTW Architects in Sydney created the “Entry
Paradise Pavilion” for this futuristic reflection.
The design of the Entry
Paradise Pavilion was
created on the computer
with the help of evolu­
tion­ary algorithms and
sailmaking software.
Architect Chris Bosse let
the structure “grow” following organic principles.
tual underwater world. “The water theme was
specified by Chris Bosse,” states Marc Hartings,
head of the Entry Paradise Pavilion project at
ERCO. “We vary this theme with our lighting
system and present the visitor new and everchanging lighting moods and colour compositions.”
The light was produced by state-of-the-art,
DALI-compatible lighting tools from ERCO. The
luminaires used were: Focalflood floodlights
with T16 fluorescent lamps in red, green and
blue, Focalflood facade luminaires, varychrome
LEDs and Stella spotlights with interference colour filters for sky blue. RGB colour mixing technology allowed various colours of light to be
produced with the fluorescent lamps and LEDs.
The lens system for the varychrome Focalflood
facade luminaires were adjusted so that narrow
beams of light produced a gentle wash across
Born out of foam
wall surfaces while at the same time allowing
Inspired by microscopic cell structures and
a wider light distribution in the opposite direcaided by special architectural software, Bosse
tion.
created structures resembling irregular natural
Every luminaire was individually controlled
forms such as foams, sponges or coral reefs.
by the digital lighting control system known
In this so-called “Biomorphic Architecture”,
as ERCO Light System DALI. Even the mirror
the algorithms of growth and optimisation for
balls were connected to the control system
organic structures are translated conceptually
via a switching actuator. “We would not have
into architectural forms. Using this same method even been able to implement the light scenes
the architect from the team of PTW architects,
in this form with analogue technology,” comCCDI and Arup generated the designs for the
mented Jens von der Brelie, a design engineer at
“Watercube” indoor swimming pool for the 2008 ERCO. “A conventional system would have also
Olympic Games in Beijing – a shimmer­ing blue,
required far too much space for the distribution
transparent, lightweight construction derived
cabinets and time for installation.” Instead of
from the geometric structure of foaming water. permanently wiring complex lighting installaThis process was used for ENTRY2006 to
tions with a large number of separately control­create a pavilion with a fascinating biomorphic lable circuits, the luminaires in DALI systems
form made of white elastic high-tech textiles
are individually addressable. Power supply and
– a material used for creating minimal surfaces circuit control are performed independent
by a whole series of architects and designers,
of each other. DALI-compatible control gear
including Frei Otto, Aleksandra Kasuba, 3deluxe make a range of functions available in every
or Ernesto Neto. Working from the computerluminaire, such as switching and dimming;
generated cutting patterns, it took Australian
these functions are controlled by the lighting
sailmakers four weeks to manufacture the form. control system using what is known as the DALI
The finished pavilion occupies a space of 350m3 protocol (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface).
when put up, yet it weighs a mere 17kg and
folds down to fit into a suitcase – which is how
Bosse brought it to Essen.
Underwater worlds simulated by lighting
A team from the architectural lighting spe­
cialists ERCO in Lüdenscheid added dynamic
coloured lighting effects to the pavilion in
order to bring the “aesthetics of form” to light
– or in fact to coloured light! Ever-changing
light scenes with time-controlled colour progressions were projected onto the fabric. In
addition, reflected light from the illuminated
“mirror balls”, also formed different patterns.
In this way the team from ERCO created a vir-
12 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 13
tune the light
As a result, the fantastic flow of colour moods
increased the magical effect of the innovative
pavilion architecture and prepared the visitors
for the exhibition’s challenging themes.
The dynamic lighting
effect of a moving bubble
pattern on the pavilion’s
surface is produced by
“mirror balls” illuminated
by Stella spotlights.
DALI not only controls
the brightness of the
spotlights but also, via
switching actuators, the
movement of the balls.
DALI put to the test: the
Light System DALI successfully performs tasks
previously requiring the
use of stage technology.
Varychrome LED luminaires are the ideal tool
for intensive colour
effects. Here in the coal
washery, DALI-controlled
varychrome LED Focal­
flood facade luminaires
can cast a gentle grazing
light in any colour onto
the pavilion’s textile
surface.
14 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
To assist the design and preparation of the
lighting system, Chris Bosse provided the ERCO
team with virtual, digital models of the pavilion. After constructing the real pavilion, only
a few hours were left for programming the
light scenes. “Once the electrical installation
of the Light Clients and the Light Server was
completed, we arranged the luminaires on-site
graphically, using Light Studio’s WYSIWYG
process and then programmed all the light
scenes and progressions,” states Marc Hartings.
“Those involved always had the results right
before their eyes and were able to determine
a running order of the best light scenes, which
would then repeat on a time loop.” Chris Bosse
himself was also keen to lend a hand when it
came to choosing the colours. The user-friendly
software tools such as the colour wheel or the
colour and progression library allowed him to
intuitively set the individual properties of the
Light Clients, such as dimmer setting or colour
locus, as well as the dynamic progressions for
entire luminaire groups.
Digital dreams: Chris Bosse
A German proverb says “dreams are like
the foam on the sea” – yet it is in foam
that physics has found a highly interesting
research object. It is not just scientists who
are fascinated by things such as the ability
of soap bubbles to find the optimised form
for covering a given volume, or the stability and economy of foam-like structures,
like the sponges and other forms found
in nature. Architects like Chris Bosse also
find new inspiration here for designing and
structuring new spatial support structures.
These are highly efficient, lightweight,
transparent and more rigid than any conventional building and allow space, structure
and appearance to melt into one. Born in
Stuttgart in 1971, Bosse studied in Germany
(incl. Institut für
��������������������������������
Leichtbau�������������������
, under Prof. Frei
Otto) and Switzerland and has worked in
several European architectural firms. He
concluded his postgraduate studies at the
University of Stuttgart with a dissertation on
the effects of virtual and real form-finding on
architecture. Working with S.M. Oreyzi, Cologne
(www.smoarchitektur.com), he designed the
“Bubble Highrise” for Berlin in 2002 (published
in: a+u, 05_01). Since 2003 he has been working at PTW Architects in Sydney on various
high-profile projects in China, Japan and the
Middle East. These include a large-scale spaceframe construction, which was inspired by
bubble structures and designed on the computer by the architects and engineers using
“evolutionary algorithms”, for the National
Swimming Centre for Beijing 2008. The building, known as the “Watercube”, has been under
construction in China since 2004 and has
already received the Atmosphere Award at the
9th Venice Biennial. In another pavilion, this
time a marquee for MOËT in Melbourne, the
young architect again explored his interest in
unusual structures, creating a freeform interior
based on the physical properties of champagne
bubbles and minimal surface areas. Chris
Bosse’s work is widely published internationally and he guest-lectures at various universities – most recently at the AA London and the
Columbia University New York. The “Out from
Down Under” exhibition presented works from
himself and PTW this spring at the American
Institute of Architecture, San Francisco.
www.chrisbosse.de
www.ptw.com.au
Beijing Watercube
National Swimming
Center
Photo: PTW Architects/
Arup/CCDI
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 15
Richard Kelly:
­Defining a Modern
Archi­tecture of Light
Margaret Maile Petty, Design historian
The pioneer of lighting
design, Richard Kelly,
saw himself first and
foremost as a specialised
architect.
16 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
Lighting is such a large part of the visual
arts—architecture, most of all—that I’m sure
the best we can do today will be inadequate
tomorrow. I can logically project a great
many techniques in lighting to improve
people’s lives or to make a house more
beautiful, but it’s all theory until we have
the record of experience, which we are only
beginning to write.
—Richard Kelly, 1958
It is difficult to imagine what architectural
lighting today would look like without the
rich and lasting contributions of the pioneering twentieth-century lighting designer
Richard Kelly (1910-1977). His deep influence is so tightly imbedded in the theory
and practice of modern architectural lighting design that it has become almost invisible. Many of us recognize the principles and
the techniques Kelly innovated even if we
are unaware of their attribution. Similarly
we are familiar with many of iconic projects
to which Kelly contributed although we may
be surprised to learn of his involvement with
these modern architectural masterpieces,
such as the Glass House, New Canaan, CT
(1949), Yale University Art Gallery, New
Haven, CT (1953), The Seagram Building,
New York, NY (1958), Dulles International
Airport, Dulles, VA (1963), and the Yale
Center of British Art, New Haven, CT (1974).
The long list of prominent twentieth-century architects and designers with whom
Kelly collaborated with during his career is
equally impressive and includes such figures as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Philip
Johnson, Eero Saarinen, Louis I. Kahn, I. M.
Pei, Eliot Noyes, Richard Neutra, Gordon
Bunshaft, Alexander Girard, Henry Dreyfuss,
and Florence Knoll. With many of these
architects and designers Kelly worked on
multiple projects and developed mature and
mutually respectful working relationships. In
this way Kelly was able to realize his goal of
fostering a true integration of lighting and
architecture. In addition to his significant
body of work, Kelly also frequently served as
a visiting professor at numerous institutions
including Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Cornell,
Rhode Island School of Design, and Illinois
Institute of Technology, where he taught
the art of lighting to generations of designers. As a practitioner and educator Kelly was
instrumental in the development of modern
architectural lighting design.
Essential to understanding Kelly’s impact
on the profession, is an appreciation for
tenacity with which he fought for the
acceptance of lighting design as an integral
part of architecture. Since the introduction
of electric light in the later part of the nineteenth century, the relationship between
architecture and electric lighting developed
slowly and often antagonistically—some
architects and theorist believed that architectural lighting represented a threat to the
integrity of architecture and that it had the
potential to overwhelm architectural form.
Despite this opposition, Kelly consistently
described light as the key mode through
which we understand and experience architecture and the designed environment.
Adamant that modern lighting design must
offer more than functional illumination or
decorative embellishment, Kelly argued that
it must be addressed equally in the initial
design phase with other primary architectural elements. He did much to change the
perception of lighting design within the
architectural community and his work was
recognized by prominent professional architectural associations on several occasions
during his lifetime. The American Institute
of Architects (AIA) honored Kelly twice, first
in 1964 with a Collaborative Achievement
Award for his contributions to the Seagram
Building and the Fours Seasons Restaurant,
and again in 1967 with a Gold Medal for his
cumulative work on “light in architecture.”
Kelly, who was born just a decade after
the turn of the century in Zanesville, Ohio,
took an early interest in the potential of
lighting to effect the perception and experience of our surroundings (supposedly his
first revelation occurred as a child when he
became annoyed with the poor illumination in his mother’s kitchen). In his teens
Kelly became involved with his high school’s
theatrical productions, where he began to
explore light as an expressive design element. After completing high school, Kelly
moved to New York City and while attending Columbia University began designing
lighting fixtures for various manufacturers. After graduating from Columbia, Kelly
worked for a short time with a prominent
New York interior designer, but quickly managed to gather the resources to open his
own lighting design office in 1935. This was
a frustrating time for Kelly however, as he
described, “There weren’t lighting consultants then. Nobody would pay for my ideas,
but they would buy fixtures, so I designed
lighting and I designed lighting fixtures
which I made and sold.” In this way Kelly
found a means to design light for architecture—by creating new fixtures and urging for
their architectural integration.
Expanding his practice and working with
various architects and designers in the years
leading up to World War II, Kelly found
that the increasing popularity of modern
architectural forms and materials, especially
glass, required new lighting applications not
then available on the market. However, Kelly
stressed that new lamps and fixtures alone
would not solve the problem. According to
Kelly, modern architecture would only be
fully realized, both formally and conceptually, with the careful manipulation of light,
designed in relation to modern form and
with a thorough understanding of modern
architectural materials. Early on he recognized the great need for the modernization
of the lighting industry, both in terms of
technology and programmatic design. With
the outbreak of World War II, Kelly, who was
ineligible for service, enrolled in the Yale
University School of Architecture believing
that with a degree in architecture he would
able to legitimately assert his ideas, as well
as his designs, among architects. Not wanting to be considered a fixture designer or
lighting engineer, Kelly was determined to
be an architect of light.
Kelly graduated from Yale in 1944 with
a BA in architecture. This was a turning
point for Kelly and dramatically set him
apart from many of his peers in the lighting
industry. Considering himself a “specialized architect,” Kelly began to use the title
“architectural lighting consultant” and in
so doing distinguished his approach and
work from that of lighting engineers and
theatrical lighting designers. He became one
of the first American architectural lighting
designers to be professionally trained as an
architect and to work completely independently from both fixture manufacturers and
electrical engineering contractors. In this
way, he helped define the independence of
the discipline as we know it today. From here
forward, Kelly spoke of light as architecture
and in architectural terms, helping establish
the principles and vocabulary of modern
architectural lighting design.
It is during this period that Kelly also
began to develop his unique philosophy of
light, which he introduced in 1952 in a lecture entitled “Lighting as an Integral Part of
Architecture.” In this lecture Kelly described
his theory of “Light Energy Impacts,” which
formed the core of his philosophical and
methodological approach to lighting design.
He introduced his theory, explaining: “In
front of the mind’s eye are three elements
in the perceptions of visual design—three
elemental kinds of light effect…(1) focal
glow or highlight, (2) Ambient luminescence
or graded washes, (3) Play of brilliants or
sharp detail. These three elements are also
the order of imaginative planning.” For
Kelly, each of these elemental light effects
had a specific character and role to play in
the articulation and performance of the
designed environment. Focal glow, Kelly
defined as “the pool of light at your favorite
reading chair,” and suggested that it, “draws
attention…sells merchandise, separates the
important from the unimportant.” Ambient
luminescence Kelly described as “twilight
haze on a wide river where shore and water
and sky are indistinguishable…It is also all
we know of ‘indirect’ lighting.” He also proposed that ambient luminescence “produces
shadowless illumination…minimizes form
and bulk…and the importance of all things
and people. It can suggest the freedom of
space and can suggest infinity.” The final
element, play of brilliants, Kelly described
as “Times Square at night…sunlight on a
fountain or a rippling brook” and argued
that it had the potential to “excite the optic
nerves…stimulate the body and spirit…and
sharpen the wit.” Kelly concluded his lecture
stressing that “visual beauty is perceived by
an interplay of all three kinds of light,” with
one element generally playing a prominent
role in the total composition. According to
Kelly’s theory it is the totality of the luminous composition that is most critical to the
success of the lighting plan. By identifying
the elemental light effects that directly and
powerfully shape visual perception, Kelly
established a lasting legacy with his “Light
Energy Impacts.”
In addition to pursuing his interests in
the relationship between light, perception,
and sensual experience, Kelly was actively
involved in the physical application of his
principles of illumination. By 1950, only
six years after graduating from Yale, Kelly
had completed over 30 public projects and
as least as many private residences. In this
period Kelly collaborated on a variety of
projects, designing the lighting for such
well-known New York City locations as Stork
Club Cub Room, the Little Casino Club (with
Oscar Nitzschke), Tiffany & Co., and Bonwit
Teller, as well as the Container Corporation
of America’s executive offices in Chicago.
Kelly’s early work in private residences
represents perhaps his most innovative work
in this period and best prefaces his later
work. Two projects in particular stand out
as highlights of Kelly’s early career: Richard
Neutra’s Edgar J. Kaufman, Sr. house in
Palm Springs, California (1947) and Philip
Johnson’s Glass House. Both residences
exemplify Kelly’s response to the challenge
of lighting modern architecture. These
residences also illustrate Kelly’s appreciation for the modern ideal of creating fluidity between indoors and outdoors. Kelly’s
lighting program for the Kaufmann House
demonstrates his early experimentation with
a number of illumination techniques that he
would successfully develop in the following
decade, including luminous ceilings, luminous walls, and perimeter downlighting—all
of which facilitated the connection between
the interior and the exterior. Similarly, at the
Glass House, Kelly used strong perimeter
downlighting in combination with carefully
edited landscape illumination to maintain
the transparency of Johnson’s glass-walled
pavilion after dark. Looking back at the
design of the Glass House in 1979, Philip
Johnson commented, “When I first moved
into the glass house there was no light—
other than the sun. You can imagine the
problem with reflections. If you had one
bulb, you saw six. When it got dark outside,
there wasn’t anything a lighting man could
do, or so I thought. Richard [Kelly] founded
the art of residential lighting the day he
designed the lighting for the Glass House.”
In the next two decades Kelly would collaborate on some of the most significant
projects in the history of twentieth-century
architecture. Indeed, it is hard to believe in
our age of specialization that one man (who
worked very independently and never had a
large supporting staff) could have realized
so many successful and extensive projects
in such a short period of time. Between
1955 and 1965, Kelly completed roughly
100 projects. Among this extensive list is the
Seagram Building and its ground breaking
“tower of light” effect, which represents
the first monumentally-scaled example of
luminous architecture in the United States.
Richard Kelly (left) and
Edison Price, who, as a
luminaire builder, was
his congenial partner
on many projects. In the
background, the model
of the Barbizon Plaza
Chandelier (circa 1955).
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 17
About the author
Margaret Maile is an architectural
lighting design historian and teaches
at Parsons the New School for Design
in New York City. Maile‘s Master‘s thesis
focused on Richard Kelly and his pio­
neering work in collaboration with Philip
Johnson and Mies van der Rohe. Currently
a Ph.D. candidate at The Bard Graduate
Center in New York City, Maile‘s publica­
tions include: "Spiegelungen / Reflec­
tions“ in Leuchtende Bauten: Architektur
der Nacht (Germany: Hatje Cantz Verlage,
2006), "Illuminating the Glass Box: Archi­tectural lighting design and the perform­
ance of modern architecture in post-war
America“ Journal of the Society of Archi­
tectural Historians v6 (June 2007), and
"The Seagram Building: Standing Up to
the Test of Time,“ Professional Lighting
Design n50 (July/August 2006), as well
as numerous articles in Architectural
Lighting Magazine.
18 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
It is difficult to overestimate the importance
of the Seagram Building’s lighting program,
as one reviewer indicated shortly after its
completion, the lighting of the Seagram
Building gave, “artificial light an entirely
new significance as an element of architectural design.” In a similar tone, Architectural
Forum described the Seagram Building in
1958 as “one of the best-illuminated buildings ever constructed.”
In this ten-year period Kelly also completed a series of vastly scaled projects with
Eero Saarinen that helped shape the look
and performance of a variety of typologies
of modern architecture, including corporate
headquarters and research laboratories,
universities, theaters and auditoriums, and
airports. Perhaps most influential were
Saarinen and Kelly’s collaborations on a
number of corporate research laboratory
complexes including the General Motors
Technical Center (1956) in Detroit, Michigan, The IBM Thomas Watson Research
Center (1961) in Yorktown, New York, and
the Bell Telephone Laboratories (1962)
in Homdel, New Jersey. For each of these
projects Kelly designed integrated lighting
programs encompassing offices, laboratories, lobbies, showrooms, facades and landscape. Kelly’s ideal of the complete synthesis
of light with the designed environment was
realized on an unparalleled scale with these
projects.
Even in the 1950s and 60s, long before
daylighting became a buzzword, Kelly advocated for the incorporation of daylight into
the architectural and lighting program. He
believed that lighting design must holistically address the circadian nature architecture, arguing that, “The handling of forms,
the meaning of a room has to relate to daylight.” The sensitivity and sophistication of
Kelly’s knowledge and appreciation of daylighting is revealed in his collaborations with
Louis Kahn. For Kahn’s Kimbell Museum,
Kelly collaborated with Edison Price and the
mathematician Issac Goodbar, designing
the now-famous cycloid vault and curved
perforated aluminum reflector that channels reflected and diffuse natural light into
the museum. Together this extraordinarily talented group created one of the most
beautiful and well-daylit museums of the
modern era.
Kelly’s many fascinating collaborations
from this period are far too numerous to discuss in detail here. The deep and lasting professional relationships that Kelly developed
with Mies van der Rohe, Philip Johnson,
Eero Saarinen, and Louis Kahn rightfully
deserve a volume of their own. Fortunately,
the current Kelly exhibition, “Light Energy
Impact: The Legacy of Richard Kelly,” hosted
by ERCO in collaboration with ELDA, is
traveling to six different locations throughout Europe this year and will give many the
opportunity to experience and explore a
wealth unique of materials drawn from the
Richard Kelly archive. This exhibition helps
us remember and appreciate Kelly’s enormous contribution to the practice of modern
architectural lighting design. His devotion
to forging the discipline of architectural
lighting design and his relentless efforts to
legitimize light as a primary architectural
material may serve as an inspiration to us all,
and encourage us always to strive for greater
levels of excellence in the architecture of
light.
Van Meter Residence
Springfield, Illinois,
1962-63
Architects:
King & Murphy
Wireless Chandelier
The Barbizon-Plaza Hotel
New York, New York,1955
The Four Seasons
­Restaurant
New York, New York,
1957 – 1958
Architect, Philip Johnson
Associates
Wiley House
Westport,
Connecticut, 1954
Architect: Philip Johnson
Howard M. Brandston
After founding the light­
ing design practise of
Brandston Partnership
Inc. in 1966, Howard
Brandston has more than
forty years experience
in lighting design, engi­
neering and electronics.
www.concerninglight.com
I knew Richard Kelly! He was a very special
person to me at the start of my career at,
what now seems to me, to have been a very
early age. I was an awestruck boy. He was
an iconic figure to me who he referred to
as “the kid,” and rightly so. His work was an
inspiration and he was a model for what I
had dreams of becoming – a lighting desig­
ner that would some day leave a stamp on
lighting design – my chosen profession. It is
a great honor to receive an award that bears
his name. The exposure to Mr. Kelly was a
true educational experience.
My mentor, Professor Stanley R.
McCandless, used to say, "You remain only
a practitioner, and do not become a true
professional, unless you are an educator.“
I firmly believe that education is the key to
making lighting design a recognized and
thriving profession. It is interesting to see
how important education became to me – it
became a particular passion of mine. I have
worked with the same fervor to advance light­
ing education as I did my design practice. If I am
to have a legacy in lighting – I think education
will be where the mark has been made.
Lighting education flourished in the early
1900’s. But during the 1940’s lighting educa­
tion went into obscurity. In this 40 year cyclic
pattern, lighting education began to grow again
in the 1980’s. Here we are in the middle of the
next 40 year lighting education cycle. What
would I like to see occur?
The following is a short list of four elements
of a good lighting education curriculum:
First we must teach people in lighting to see.
For if you can’t see, how will you know how
to create what it is you wish to see? When it
becomes what you wish to see, it becomes per­
ception. There is a huge difference between to
see and to perceive. To see is universal, to per­
ceive is individual to each person within their
personal experience and culture.
Second, we must inspire creativity – creativity
is simply the realization there is little benefit
in doing things the way they have always been
done. Following a recommended practice is not
creative; it is a thought – free exercise.
Third, we must teach people to think outside
the box. In order to think “outside the box” you
first have to know what’s in it. So a complete
mastery of the science and technical aspects of
the art of lighting is a fundamental requirement.
Finally, we must teach accountability – to be
accountable to clients for a creative solution to
fit their needs, not some standard. Why else
were we hired?
What a waste my life would be if I did
not in some way follow the model of
Richard Kelly and the example set by Stanley
McCand­less, to send some well-educated
people into the profession to reshape it,
carry it on and grow it, through leadership
and education, for the next generations to
come. I hope that all of you in the audience
will also take it upon yourselves to support
lighting education; as a sponsor, contribut­
ing to a scholarship fund such as the Richard
Kelly Fund; or as a teacher, working within
your local schools and IES section, as a men­
tor to a deserving lighting intern. Education
is a continuous process; it is our obligation
to see that the lighting profession replen­
ishes itself with bright new talent, educated,
ready, and able to assume the mantle of
professional responsibility. I know Richard
would love that.
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 19
New York State Theater
Lincoln Center for the
Performing Arts
New York, New York,1965
Architect: Philip Johnson
Photo: �������������
Ezra Stoller
© ESTO
Philip Johnson's Glass
House
New Canaan,
Connecticut, 1948-49
Architect: Philip Johnson
Seagram Building
New York, New York, 1957
Ludwig Mies van der
Rohe and Philip Johnson,
Architects
Photos: �������������
Ezra Stoller
© ESTO
20 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
Paul Marantz
With training in
­architecture, archi­
tectural history, and
industrial design as
well as in lighting,
Mr. Marantz brings
a multi-disciplinary
background to archi­
tectural lighting. He
received his Bachelor
of Arts degree from
Oberlin College with
graduate work at Case/
Western Reserve Uni­
versity and Brooklyn
College. As co-founder
of Fisher Marantz Stone
in1971 he is today Con­
sulting Design Principal
of this New York-based
lighting design con­
sultancy. His lighting
designs have received
numerous awards and
citations.
www.fmsp.com
At the moment I decided to embark on a career
in architectural lighting, Richard Kelly was
nearing the end of his. Naively, I rang his office
doorbell to ask for a job, spoke briefly with Kelly,
left off a resume, and that was the end of it.
As brief as our personal contact was, the
influence of Richard Kelly on my work was
enormous in two ways;
First, to say that Richard Kelly “created”
modern architectural lighting and the idea of
a professional design practice that enabled it
to be realized, is to say that Kelly is the spiritual
“father” of what has now become a world­
wide endeavor for many hundreds of lighting
designers.
In respect of the fact that Kelly came of age
at the same time as a generation of great archi­
tects he was lucky; in respect of the fact that
he could make architecture sing with light was
a great and lasting gift that influences me and
my colleagues to this day.
Second, Kelly was fortunate in having a
young Edison Price as a willing co-conspirator
in realizing new ideas about lighting and the
fittings that enable it. Together they invented
the techniques of modern architectural lighting
(much of it available through Erco today). I was
fortunate to be, similarly, a co-conspirator
with Price in his later years (his mind never
aged).
Recently my firm was happy to collabo­
rate in the restoration of Louis Kahn’s Yale
Art Gallery, an early Kelly/Price co-produc­
tion. There was no question about what
needed to be done. Kahn’s vision, brought to
life by Kelly, was refreshed but not altered.
Anything else would have been a sacrilege.
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 21
Light Server 64+
Data summary
- Up to 12 Light Server 64+ units
- Up to 64 DALI addresses per server
- Overall length: up to 12 x 64 = 768 addresses
- 12 x 31 Light Changers
- 12 x 4 push-button groups
- 1024 light scenes
- 64 zones
The user-friendly ERCO solution for
large DALI installations. By using up to
12 networked Light Server 64+ units, the
address capacity of 64 addresses per DALI
segment can be multiplied to a maximum
of 768 addresses.
Hub/Switch
O0148
10720
0441A
Light Server 64+
max. 12
52000
Ethernet
DALI
1072052000
E 230-240V~
50-60Hz
J
N10348
Ti
Using the luminaire ID,
the mounting location
of an ERCO Light Client
can be recorded on the
drawing with ease and
certainty, and then later
­identified on the PC.
0441AO0148
DALI
C
Step 2
The sticker is transferred
to the reflected ceiling
plan drawing to show the
exact mounting location
of each Light Client.
Step 1
Once the Light Client is
installed, the sticker with
article identification and
additional luminaire ID is
removed.
Step 3
The luminaire ID is also
stored in the control gear
of each Light Client. It
is displayed in the Light
Studio software in its
own dedicated column
in the Client list.
120V-240V
50-60Hz
Hub/Switch
Two Light Server 64+
units can be directly
connected together with
a cat-5 network cable.
To network more than
two units, simply use an
off-the-shelf Ethernet
hub/switch.
22 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
The networkable Light Server 64+
DALI protocol limits the number of addresses in
a conventional DALI system to 64. ERCO Light
System DALI goes beyond this limit with the
Light Server 64+, which can be networked with
other Light Servers of the same type through
an Ethernet interface. The Light Server 64 can
handle up to 64 DALI addresses allowing it to
cope with many typical smaller lighting control applications. Larger installations with over
64 addresses can be implemented by networking up to twelve Light Server 64+ units via the
integrated Ethernet interfaces. This allows up
to 768 DALI addresses to be managed, plus the
number of connectable Light Changers is also
multiplied accordingly. It is important to note
that every Light Server 64+ controls a separate
DALI line, which still remains restricted to a maximum of 64 addresses. This must be considered
when routing the cables, i.e. by ensuring that
practical room segments or luminaire groups
with up to 64 DALI addresses are connected to
one Light Server each.
Light Clients with Luminaire ID
The convenience of plug-and-play connectivity when commissioning via individually coded
Light Clients is fully retained in a networked
Light System DALI despite its considerably
larger number of DALI addresses. When the
view is unrestricted, the mounting locations
of Light Clients are identified simply by using
the “flash” option in the Light Studio software.
However, this is not always possible for larger
Light System DALI networks. Consequently, all
Light Clients now have an additional sticker
with a luminaire ID. This individual luminaire ID
allows each Light Client to be identified during
commissioning and in the lighting control software. The sticker can be removed by the installer
and transferred to the appropriate place on
the reflected ceiling plan drawing to show the
mounting location of each Light Client. In addition to the convenience of plug-and-play, the
ERCO concept of unique luminaire identification
also ensures a reliable commissioning process
due to the uniform docu­mentation on the plan,
on the product and in the software.
Since the control gear
is supplied ex-works pro­grammed with the lumi­
naire ID, the Light Studio
software can automatically recognise it and list
it on the monitor screen
in its own dedicated
column. It is then an easy
matter for the designer
to arrange the luminaire
symbols as required on
the Stage in Light Studio.
An additional list for
Light Changers and pushbuttons shows the Light
Servers with which they
are connected.
For further information,
see our flyer on the new
Light Server 64+. Please
ask your local ERCO lighting consultant for a copy:
www.erco.com/contact
Or download the Flyer
as a PDF from the ERCO
Light Scout:
www.erco.com/download
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 23
Beams of light are perceived as independent
patterns. Their form and
position on the wall can
visually divide the room
and give it structure.
Conversely, uniform wallwashing encourages us to
perceive the wall surfaces
as a uniform architectural
element.
Focus
Double focus
Seeing and perceiving: the effects of perception in the practice of lighting design
Some people have perfect pitch and can
instantly recognise an A note. No similar phenomenon is known for light; the eye’s vision is
always relative – the impression of brightness
of an illuminated wall greatly depends on the
surroundings. A wall illuminated with 100lx
can appear very bright in a dark environment,
whereas an area with the same illuminance in a
foyer flooded with daylight can seem very dim.
Similarly, the human eye never interprets light
colours in absolute terms either. If we remain in
a given location, the eye will adjust to a constant
perception of colour. As a result, if no reference
surface is present, both warm-white or daylight
white light will appear as neutral white light.
Therefore, when choosing the appropriate illuminance or light colour in a real-life situation,
the neighbouring areas and spaces should also
be included and any varying ambient brightness
levels considered.
In addition to the adaptation to both brightness and colour, an important role in lighting
design is also played by the shape and brightness contrasts of light patterns. Light patterns
can be perceived as spatial partitioning, as an
element for focussing the vision or as a decorative feature. It is the designer’s job to harmonise
the patterns of light with the architecture so
that they are not too dominating and therefore detrimental. By choosing the appropriate
lighting technology, the designers can decide
to what extent they want to work with striking light patterns, such as beams of light on
surfaces, or whether they prefer to emphasise
the uniformity of the architectural elements by
lighting a surface evenly. Designers can even
create a hierarchy of perception by using light
patterns with different illuminance levels, i.e.
using light to accentuate important objects
while allowing unimportant items to recede into
the darkness. Spaces can be divided into zones
of differing importance. The main thing here
is to be conscious of how perceptible the contrast ratios are: whereas a brightness contrast
between object and surroundings of 1:2 can
barely be registered, a ratio of 1:5 can build up
a subtle contrast and 1:10 can produce a clear
emphasis – this background knowledge makes
it clear why it is often good practice to build up
a lighting concept starting from the lowest possible ambient lighting level.
Seeing and perceiving: the theory of
­perception
Many lighting effects can only be understood
and effectively controlled against the background of perception psychology. Just a few
aspects of the theory of perception can be
touched on here; for a more comprehensive and
in-depth treatment, please see the “Guide” area
of the Light Scout (www.erco.com).
We perceive our visual environment using our
visual organs. These include not only the eye and
the optic nerve but also the parts of our brain
which are actively involved in processing and
interpreting images. The perception of brightness is primarily regulated by the eye. Since the
eye does not cover the entire spectrum of visible
luminance levels with the same photoreceptor
cells, it adapts for a particular section of this
spectrum in each case. Objects whose luminance
is too high for a certain state of adaptation will
dazzle and appear too bright. The impression of
brightness of an illuminated wall will therefore
depend on the eye’s state of adaptation, i.e.
whether it had previously adjusted to a bright
or dark situation.
When interpreting patterns of light, our
perception of constancy comes into play. Light
patterns, i.e. differences in brightness levels on
objects, can have different causes: the type of
lighting, the shape of the object or its surface
characteristics. The interpretation as to which
aspect applies is made in the perception process
by our eye and brain, largely from previously
stored experience. The Basics chapter of the
Guide contains a section on Constancy explaining how uneven light patterns can lead to con­fusing lighting situations, e.g. if beams of light
are positioned with no relation to the architecture or objects. In the following section about
perception of gestalt, the Guide explains how
our perception understands certain patterns
as objects. The examples also show how the
luminaire arrangement can alter the spatial
impression.
The effect of colours can be partly explained
by the eye’s cone and rod photoreceptor cells,
e.g. how varying colour intensity is attributable
to the different colour sensitivity of the red,
green and blue rod and cone cells. Conversely,
painter and art theorist Johannes Itten accounts
for colour contrasts as a subjective phenomenon
in his colour theory. The Guide explains the
physiological side in the Basics chapter, while
the Designing with light chapter illustrates
the aspect of colour contrasts with interactive
examples.
Thomas Schielke
Cornea
Lens
Iris
Fovea
Optic nerve
The eye can only process
luminance contrasts to a
certain extent. The photo­
receptor system adapts
itself to the surroundings, so the impression
of brightness is always
relative.
The accent light on the
objects allows the room
to recede into the background. In this way, the
lighting can help to focus
our attention.
The contrast between
cooler and warmer
colours of light creates
permanent tension within
the room. In fact, coloured
light by contrast is virtually perceived as neutral
after a short while.
For further information
on the topic of Seeing and
perception, please refer to
the Basics chapter in the
Guide.
www.erco.com/guide
The position of the beam
will determine whether
the beam is perceived as
supportive or distracting.
Beams of light that do not
correspond to the geometry of the image area are
perceived as distracting,
independent patterns.
The laws of gestalt are
not only applicable to
the position of the beam
but also to the luminaire
layout: the gestalt law of
proximity understands
luminaires as pairs.
Thomas Schielke
24 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 25
A villa sets sail
Welcome to the captain’s bridge: the
seaward orientation is the theme of
this villa built by Lord Norman Foster
in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat.
Panoramic glass fronts are the dream of many
a private home owner. The living area seems
to open up and extend to the horizon – or at
least to the plot’s boundary. The unfortunate
fact that the transparent panes of glass rapidly turn into a one-way mirror with the onset
of darkness was something that even Phillip
Johnson had to concede with his self-designed
experimental home, the “Glass House". So he
commissioned the pioneer of lighting design,
Richard Kelly, to solve this problem. More about
Kelly elsewhere in this Lichtbericht, but here’s
his trick in brief: he avoided any dazzling light
sources in the interior of the house and then
scenically lit the view outside by illuminating
the lawn and shrubbery.
The latter is unfortunately not a viable option
with this villa because the view through its
glass front actually does extend to the horizon,
stretching, unhindered, out across the cliffs,
rocky beach and the Mediterranean. Yet the
architect Lord Norman Foster found a technical
solution even for this. As if by magic, the facade
– which is 18 tons of glass and steel don’t forget
– glides to one side under electric power at the
touch of a button. This makes reflection a thing
of the past. The mild climate of the Côte d‘Azur
makes it possible to implement the ultimate
fusion of indoor and outdoor areas. The natural
light sources of the moon and stars, coupled
maybe with some light from a passing yacht, is
the only illumination for this particular view.
While making use of references to the maritime theme of the yacht, Foster follows classical
modernism, proponents of which, Le Corbusier
and Eileen Gray, also built holiday homes on the
picturesque coast of Cap Ferrat. It is not just the
stainless steel railings and the ubiquitous white
finish that are reminiscent of a luxury ship, but
also and especially, the spectacular solution for
solar protection. Vaulting over the entire building, which is a terraced design on the escarpment, are two huge steel arcs between which
steel cables are spanned. Stretched across these
cables are textile sails acting as a sunshade
– in naval white of course. An interesting point
worth mentioning is that this villa is, strictly
speaking, a conversion, as there have not been
any vacant plots of land in this highly desirable
location for a long while and strict preservation
orders are in force. On the other hand however,
hardly anything can be recognized of the original house – its inimitable cool and debonair elegance has now become a typical Foster design.
Huge sails are spanned
between two giant steel
arcs. Under this sunshade
the villa nestles into the
cliffs.
Debonair luxury: fourstorey living space with
an open view of the
Mediterranean can be
perfectly unpretentious
– if the architect’s name
is Foster. Concentrated
lighting, restricted to
just a few accents with
Jilly spotlights for lowvoltage halogen lamps,
decisively contributes to
the comfort.
26 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 27
The villa’s furnishings
are reduced to the bare
essentials: with designs
from the architect or
design classics like this
chaise longue by Charles
Eames.
Architect: Foster & Partners, London
Photographer: Richard Bryant / arcaid.co.uk
In such an environment
characterised by understated technical aesthetics, accents such as the
open fire or candlelight
on the dinner table are
more pronounced. The
rear wall of the living
room features a “mud
painting" by Richard Long.
The pool is located on the
roof, where it contributes
to cooling the whole
building in the heat of
the summer.
Optec wallwashers
mounted on tracks along
the bookshelf-lined side
walls provide subdued
vertical illumination, giving a feel for the dimensions of the living space
and producing a pleasant
ambient brightness.
The view from the master’s workplace can compete with the captain’s
bridge of an ocean liner
– except that this interior
has more style.
Access to the building’s
many levels can be gained
quickly via a glazed lift
or, more adventurously,
via the zigzagged steel
stairway.
The glass banisters are
typically Foster – the
stainless steel staircase
railings on the other hand
allude to the steamship
look that has characterised the appearance of
modern architecture since
Le Corbusier.
28 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 29
Rembrandt: the quest of a genius
An exhibition at Berlin’s Kulturforum
­Gallery from 4 August to 5 November 2006.
To achieve optimum
viewing conditions, the
designers have carefully balanced out the
brightness contrast
between coloured walls
and accentuated paintings – a task helped by
the Optec spotlights,
which can be individually
dimmed by transformermounted potentiometers.
Conversion filters even
out the shift in colour
temperature of the
dimmed halogen lamps
into warm-tones so that
the illumination of the
paintings appears exceptionally neutral and analytical. The high ceilings
allow an optimum angle
of incidence of approx
30° for the accentuating
beams.
Mysterious Rembrandt:
even the young visitors
cannot escape the fascination that the paintings
themselves emit down
through the centuries
– like the “Girl in a picture
frame” from 1641, a loan
from the Royal Castle of
Warsaw.
30 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
Exhibition design and lighting design:
Hansjörg Hartung, Berlin
Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Photos: Sabine Wenzel, Berlin
www.smb.museum
Powerful, dark colours
and an emotive interaction of light and dark: the
exhibition lighting uses
modern means to interpret the lighting moods
so typical of Rembrandt’s
work.
2006 was the Year of Rembrandt. The 400th
anniversary of the birth of the artistic genius
was celebrated with a veritable cavalcade of
events and exhibitions. One definite highlight
had to be the great Berlin exhibition, created in
cooperation with Het Rembrandthuis, Amsterdam, and the Rembrandt Research Project.
Even in non-anniversary years, the Staatliche
Museen zu Berlin (Berlin State Museums) are in
the fortunate position of having one of the most
important collections of Rembrandt’s works. The
curators brought together 82 paintings for the
exhibition, including loans from museums and
private collections from all around the world.
The exhibition focussed on Rembrandt’s post1642 creative crisis and on his restless quest for
a new style in the early 1650s. Despite his popularity, much about Rembrandt and his biography
remains an enigma. Ever-changing opinions
about which works are to be attributed to the
artist keep art historians on their toes, although
the sheer numbers of students and assistants in
Rembrandt’s workshop means that the authorship of some of his works will forever remain in
the dark. In fact, the exhibition even uses this as
a theme: its crowning conclusion is an illustrious symposium on the latest developments in
research on Rembrandt.
In contrast with the Kulturforum’s parallel exhibition of drawings and prints from the
Dutch master, known as the “Rembrandt-Block”,
the gallery’s hall for rotating exhibitions was
darkened and provided with installations for
the occasion by the stage designer and exhibition architect Hansjörg Hartung. Coloured wall
surfaces in dark green and red brought a touch
of Baroque to ­Berlin. When it came to the lighting, the exhibition designers saw that it was
important to illuminate these coloured walls
softly and uniformly as a background and to
add brightness to the paintings themselves with
exactly placed spotlights in as neutral white as
possible. The lighting engineers achieved this
using Optec spotlights and wallwashers for
low-voltage halogen lamps on 3-circuit track.
The spotlights were fitted with honeycomb
anti-dazzle screen accessories for maximum
glare protection and with conversion filters for
correcting the colour temperature. The effort
and attention invested in the lighting resulted
in optimum visual conditions and an emotive
atmosphere of light and dark – an atmosphere
that allowed over 200,000 visitors to immerse
themselves in the world of Rembrandt.
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 31
Iittala Flagship Store, Amsterdam
When cool Scandinavians get emotional
it might have something to do with the
Northern Lights: scenographic lighting with
Light System DALI lends dramatic qualities
to the Iittala store.
Iittala Flagship Store, Amsterdam.
Architect: Bearandbunny, Amsterdam.
Lighting design: Iittala, Otto Freijser
­(Netherlands), Juha Vesamäki (Finland).
Photos: ����������
Dirk Vogel
www.iittala.com/amsterdam
The Dutch interior designers Carlijn Kriekaard
and John Maatman who have been jointly
running “Bearandbunny” design offices since
2002 designed this in cooperation with littala’s
in house retail experts. Some elements of the
classic-modern look of the existing Iittala stores
in Scandinavia have been taken over, but the
young designers from Amsterdam were also
given the chance to make their own fresh and
contemporary contribution.
The store offers the attractive products a
neutral stage with great dramatic potential.
However, this emotional element is not created by using expressive fixtures and fittings
– the shelving and display tables are simple,
rectangular and black or white – but by using
light. Everything is aimed at optimally show­
casing the articles made of glass, porcelain and
stainless steel. Thus, the tables and shelves are
diffusely backlit. The necessary accent lighting with brilliant directed light is provided by
DALI-compatible Optec spotlights with black
housings on DALI track, also in black. Together
Optimum lighting for
reflective objects such
as glasses, utensils
and porcelain: diffuse
back-lighting combined
with accent light from
spotlights which adds
highlights and correctly
If you’re looking amongst vases for a true classic
of the Modern Age, it would probably have to
be the Savoy Vase by the architect Alvar Aalto.
The nice thing about it is that not only is it
on display in all the world’s important design
museums, but, since its launch in 1937, it has
also been an immensely popular everyday
object, representing the Scandinavian feel for
life in thousands of households. Its unpretentious, simple organic form is also highly functional and fulfils its task perfectly, i.e. displaying
cut flowers to their best advantage. At ERCO,
Aalto’s vase has, for many years now, been part
of the canon of decorative objects allowed in
the corporate design manual – in opal white,
of course, so as to keep within the reduced
­corporate colour scheme.
Behind the Savoy Vase is a company that
encompasses much more than just this one
bestseller: the Finnish Iittala Gruppe. It defines
itself as the “Scandinavian design company“
and, with various brands, covers the entire range
of household goods, such as glass, porcelain,
32 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
kitchen utensils and cooking implements. The
most well known of these beyond Scandinavia
must surely be Iittala itself, for glass and crockery, and Boda Nova for utensils and metal goods;
although the other companies within the group
are also strong providers with a long-tradition
in their home markets. In economic terms, Iittala
positions itself distinctly within the design quality sector. As a result, the corporate group can
look back on solid growth over the last ten years
and in 2006 reported a respectable turnover
of EUR 190M. Against this background, Iittala
is now stepping up its global expansion – with
measures including the opening of brand-name
stores in major international cities. The company
sees particular growth potential in this sales
market and has therefore set itself high targets:
Iittala shops are destined to be the most exciting
and at the same time the most efficient within
the branch.
Exactly how this is to be implemented in
the future is shown by the Finns in their flagship store at Leidsestraat 30 in Amsterdam.
represents colours and
surfaces. Thanks to networking with the Light
System DALI, all components can be re-balanced
at any time to serve the
scenographic concept.
with the black-painted ceilings and walls, the
technology and the spatial borders are practically blanked out of our perception so that all
attention is diverted to the presentation of the
goods. The highlight however, is a large-format
lighting installation on the room’s rear wall that
attracts attention even from outside through
the panoramic glass front. The “Northern Lights”
are a giant luminous case where light colour
can be adjusted as desired via ERCO’s Light
System DALI. A superimposed grid containing
differently coloured drinking glasses from the
Iittala collection acting as “colour pixels” addi­
tionally influences its appearance. Thus product,
presentation and lighting all merge into one
overall scenographic concept with stunning
aesthetics.
The “Northern Lights”
are a backlit glass wall.
Equipped with DALI-compatible fluorescent inserts
with lamps in red, green
and blue, the installation
allows any colour of light
or brightness level to be
conveniently set via the
Light System DALI.
ERCO Light Clients, such
as the Optec spotlights
on DALI track, work with
the Light System DALI
using “plug and play”
connectivity, but even
DALI-compatible components from other manufacturers, like the tables
and shelves fitted with
fluorescent lamps, can
be seamlessly integrated
into the system.
Dark walls and ceilings
concentrate the attention
on the bright merchandising shelves and display
tables. The shimmering
lighting installation on
the rear wall acts as a
magical eye-catcher.
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 33
Ascot
Architect: HOK Sport
Lighting Design: Buro Happold
Photography: Rudi Meisel
In September 2004, Ascot Racecourse
closed for major redevelopment. The £200
million project, completed in June 2006, is
one of the most extensive of its type ever
witnessed in Europe.
www.ascot.co.uk
Focal Flood projectors,
oriented down, offer
support illuminance to
circulation areas. The
Galleria incorporates
24 sets of escalators,
40 public bridges and
20 staircases including
6 escape stairwells.
Her Majesty the Queen
reopened Ascot Racecourse on 20th June 2006.
This ambitious redevelop­
ment project took just
20 months to complete,
was delivered both on
time and within budget.
Galleria racegoers study­
ing the odds on glare
free screens, thanks to
hundreds of Lightcast
downlights for metal
halide lamps installed in
the ceiling above.
34 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
“Ascot is so exclusive that it is the only racecourse in the world where the horses own the
people.”
When renowned American columnist, Art
Buchwald, wrote his satire, ‘I chose caviar
– ordeal at Ascot’ in 1957, the racecourse was
deemed a place where only the upper classes
were allowed to frequent. Fifty years on and
Ascot breaches social and economic divisions.
It is a place where the great and the good of
society happily blend with a ‘common man’,
enjoying the special hospitality while cheering
on their equine heroes with mutual gusto.
Owned by the Crown and nestling in the
beautiful county of Berkshire, Ascot racecourse,
founded in 1711, annually hosts 26 top-level
meetings. In June, Royal Ascot, held over five
days, is attended by more than 300,000 race­
goers and is one of the major events in the
­British sporting calendar.
The striking centrepiece of the 2006 develop­
ment is the 6-storey grandstand designed by
HOK Sport. Its lightweight parasol roof structure consisting of 54 roof trusses has been
constructed to compliment the town’s natural
avenue of trees. An arc like curvature of the
roof and nearly 10,000 square metres of glass
permit a significant amount of daylight to
pass through, offering spectators a superb and
unrestricted view of both racecourse and the
beautiful surrounds of Windsor Great Park.
Over 1,000 luminaires from ERCO, including
Lightcast Downlights, Focal Floods and Optec
Spotlights are installed throughout the Ascot
complex contributing to a superb balance of
natural and artificial light.
Installed along public
walkways, Lightcast
Directional luminaires,
for metal halide lamps
and fitted with sculpture lenses ensure that
any light spill, over the
balconies, is kept to the
absolute minimum.
In 2006, 6 million racegoers passed through
the turnstiles at 59 racecourses. Whether a blood
stock dealer or owner,
a professional gambler
or a humble once a year
punter, everyone loves a
day at the races.
After football, horseracing is the most popular
spectator sport in Great
Britain and the Country
places over £10 billion
worth of bets each year.
The Government collects
£300 million in tax revenues and the bookmakers
profit by over £1 billion.
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 35
Backlights
Switched on London
(8–16 February 2007)
One of the projects for this lighting
festival along the Thames was a
new interpretation of the London
City Hall by Foster & Partners. The
lighting designers specifically illuminated individual elements of the
building in bold colours. The power
consumed equated to less than
that of a domestic hairdryer!
Lighting design: Indigo Light
­Planning, London
www.switchedonlondon.co.uk
Richard Kelly: Selected Works,
Stockholm
ERCO jointly presents this touring
exhibition together with the PLDA
(Professional Lighting Designers
Association) for the first time ever
in Europe. First stop was our Stockholm showroom from the 9th of
February to the 2nd of March 2007.
The exhibition includes a total of
37 framed works and photo boards
with original drawings, prints and
photographs from the Richard Kelly
archive. It provides an exemplary
illustration of both the philosophy
of the famous American lighting
designer/architect and also his
visionary approach to architectural lighting, daylight usage and
luminaire design. For information
on the current venue, please see
the Light Scout at: www.erco.com.
Architectural icons in
a different light: ERCO
varychrome luminaires
with LED technology, controlled by Light System
DALI, lit up the City Hall
with a splash of colour.
Tempo Shop, Berlin
(15 Nov 2006���������������
��������������
–10 Jan 2007)
The “Tempo” publication characterised a new style of magazine in
Germany in the years from 1986
to 1996. In parallel with a unique
special edition ten years after the
paper was discontinued, a tempo­
rary shop on Berlin’s Chaussee­
straße presented devotional objects
bearing the Tempo logo. The shop’s
opening became a get-together
for Berlin’s artistic and journalistic
communities.
Monograph: Otl Aicher
ERCO takes great pride in the
fact that it is one of the few
companies that have remained
faithful to and further developed the artistic style of
the designer Otl Aicher. It is
therefore pleasing to see that
Phaidon, the well-known New
York publisher, is now presenting a comprehensive, deep and
excellently designed monograph on Aicher, giving a wider
audience a closer understanding of just how contemporary
his design approaches are. A
must-have for every design
library.
Further venues:
Berlin (16.03.–01.04.2007)
Paris (26.04.–10.05.2007)
Barcelona (14.06.–30.06.2007)
Amsterdam (13.09.–05.10.2007)
London (25.10.–16.11.2007)
Vienna (29.11.–16.12.2007)
Rathgeb, Markus: Otl Aicher
(monograph), Phaidon Press,
2006, ISBN 0714843962
Architect: Susanne Raupach, Berlin
www.tempo.de
An attractive contrast to
the improvised furnish­
ings made of stacked
newspapers was the pro­
fessional lighting with
Parscan spotlights on
Hitrac tracks.
Spectacular City
NRW-Forum, Düsseldorf
(27 January 2007- 6 May 2007)
The exhibition put together by
Rotterdam’s NAI (Netherlands
Architectural Institute) showed the
highly varied strategies with which
contemporary photographers
approach the phenomenon of the
“city” – ranging from a documentary style shot to artistic montage
– all optimally presented under
the unerring light of ERCO.
The exhibition covered
works from internationally famous artists such as
Andreas Gursky (below),
Thomas Struth, Thomas
Ruff, Olivo Barbieri and
many others.
Architects and lighting
designers met in the
ERCO Showroom Stockholm for a private viewing. Welcoming speeches
were given by Jan Ejhed,
the outgoing president of
ELDA+ (PLDA), right, and
Kenneth Petersson, head
of ERCO Nordic Countries.
Monograph: Kiessler +
Partner
The book documents over
40 years of work by this
Munich-based architectural
design office. Amongst many
other buildings, Kiessler +
Partners also designed the
Technical Centre for ERCO
in 1989.
www.nrw-forum.de
Kiessler + Partner Architekten
Kiessler, Uwe (Publ.), Birkhäuser,
2006,
ISBN: 978-3-7643-7627-7
36 ERCO Lichtbericht 82
ERCO Lichtbericht 82 37
“What’s so provincial about that?”
asked an ERCO publication back in
1984. Today, buildings such as the
new fire station in Altena-Rosmart,
designed by KKW Architekten of
Altena, show that architecture with
attitude and ambition is not only
thriving in Austria’s Vorarlberg or
Holland‘s Limburg but also in the
German "province“, in Sauerland.
As befits such a striking building,
night time illumination is now provided for by lighting instruments
from ERCO’s outdoor product
range.
E
ERCO Leuchten GmbH
Postfach 24 60
58505 Lüdenscheid
Germany
Tel.:+49 2351 551 0
Fax:+49 2351 551 300
[email protected]
www.erco.com