iNterior LiGhting dEsign.. [[Light Revealing Experience]]

 Light Revealing Experience

     While reading through the assigned article I began to understand how much light undoubtedly does matter. Normal people never pay close attention to how light is effected by places, nature, climates, time and tasks. When I say normal people, I mean those that are not in the Interior Architecture major because we all know that we are far from normal. Light within places help us to remember or recollect specific atmospheres while nature manipulates light and brings back memories of past times, good or bad. Not only does climate affect people, cultures and rituals but it also affects light and the character of the light. Time is forever ticking, light is forever changing to pertain to certain tasks we attempt we accomplish. If you've never imagined light in depth before, now's the time to start.

     When we ponder about places subconscious cues can help us to remember them. These subconscious cues include light. In different places around the world light is experienced differently. Places located more towards the East would be more likely to experience sunrises and those on the West experience sunsets. Deep, down in valley's where the amount of direct sunlight is minimal can't compare to those who sit high on a mountain top and receive optimal sunlight. Because of these differences cultures of these areas begin to develop rituals and habits dealing with the rhythm of light they're exposed to. Those who experience the sunset or sunrise may plan events to celebrate this time and design including them. Different places bring forth different feelings toward light.

     “When light creates an image of nature inside a building, associations are evoked through the type of light (intense, filtered, weak), the patterns of light (speckled, dappled, smooth, wispy), the direction of light, the color of light and the relation of light to the surroundings.” (pg.11). The best way I can think to explain what this meant to me was bio-mimicry using light. To express the way light breaks through closely grown forest trees using long, vertical stalks of wood and natural sunlight is helping to bring the outdoors in. Patterns of light are being used to convey an ambience and pull forth an experience. It is used to replicate familiar settings found in nature .

     Climate has a significant affect on the amount of light used in spaces. “Light is often shunned in hot climates, while it is welcomed in cool climates,” (pg. 13). Because light sources give off heat, in warmer climates, you don't want to turn on lights and make things even warmer. Certain measures have been taken to keep warmth contained in cooler climates and keep cool contained in warmer ones. Less lighting compared to more lighting and even glazing of the windows.

     Light has the ability to help us tell time. In the past, when people used sundials to keep time, they focused on the amount of sunlight dispersed and the direction of the shadow it casted to tell what time of day it was. Light shifts during the course of the days and seasons. Become familiar with these changes and you can tell what season and when in the day it is. In some places, the change in the color of the light casting outside is also a teller of time.

     The section I felt more connected with was the relationship between light and task. Running the many tasks I partake in a day through my head and imaging the type of light I prefer for them has never crossed my mind before. Just as simple as waking up in the morning, I turn on a light so i'm not tempted to lay down and fall back asleep. It can be needing to dim the lights to watch a movie and clearly view the screen, turning off the lights to relax and sleep or changing the color of the light to set a specific type of mood. A more yellow light to trick the mind into feeling warmer or a whiter light to achieve the opposite. It's amazing what light can do and how it can make you feel.

     Light has been awarded a new importance to me. Never had I thought about light causing me to feel a certain way, a smell maybe, or a touch, but not light. All these comparisons are connected in some way or another. A places climate, nature, change in time or the task. You can't escape light, it's everywhere.