LUCE estratti LUCE 320_De Caro_Dante O Benini | Page 7

by the iconic aesthetics of our lamps, which
became a fashion cult that emphasized beauty,
often disregarding science, as would be correct in
the evolution of design. Today the ethical aspect
(energy saving, pollution, the environment) has
found a correct dimension vis-à-vis the aesthetic
feature, or better, it has become the determinant
aspect of our work, and of the Lighting designer.
An architectural project often devours all its
components, how much does poetic control
over technology influence the final result
in a building?
It influences it greatly. In all the processes
involved in the construction of a framework,
it is present in every part, and its effect positively
influences the final result.
with Lighting designer studios. I have never
had this type of professionals in my studio, even
though I have a great passion for this subject, but
I like the confrontation of different competencies;
this improves, optimizes every project.
I exist as an architect because of
multidisciplinarity, I always need a table for
confrontation, in a context that is suited to me,
each collaborator must share experiences and
visions of a way of producing my architecture.
Therefore they are not only specialists, but they
must have the sensitivity required to understand
the type of building I want and what a must
build. I have collaborated with Castagna
and Ravelli who in fact work for the theatre,
and know how to use light, but also many
others, and today I am greatly impressed
by the competence of Dean Skira.
How has the architects’ attention changed
over the years with regard to lighting
engineering projects in buildings?
Compared to the past, there has been a great
change, also because an intelligent use
of artificial light, besides the energy aspects
can help the project, any project, greatly – in our
field, a correct use of lighting is required.
In your opinion, which are the Italian schools
which pay greater attention to the topic
of Lighting design?
There are schools with consolidated historical
interests, born from ancient experiences,
as in the Anglo-Saxon countries, that have
always paid greater attention to matters
regarding lighting engineering projects; generally
the North-Western European countries are
examples of this study dedicated to light
as a determinant component in architecture
at the best Universities over the years.
This also depends on specialization, that has
always been deeply felt in those countries,
which opposed projects by “generic architects”,
characterized by the romantic craftsmanship
of the Southern European countries. This was
the case before the birth of modern design after
WWII, especially in Italy, when the aspect
regarding the science of lighting engineering,
which the Northern European countries were far
more advanced in than Italy, was shattered
Can you give an example, from the buildings
you have designed, where the dynamics of the
project “lighting” components have reached
an explicit individual characteristic?
Using microperforated metal sheets, I was able
to experiment the evolution of the relation
between built masses and light during the
hours of the day. From outside it looks like
a full metal sheet, from inside the mass
disappears, and it is as if it had its own
autonomy, and light enhances these
characteristics, as in via Valtellina, with this
building that has changed the nature of the
road, of the area, or as in the Geox building
in via Torino, with that closed multi-coloured
shield in the daytime that explodes with
a number of beams of light that disappear
in the Milan sky at night. Two examples that
are distant from one another, the former is
of the year 2000, the latter came 10 years after;
or in the skyscraper in Istanbul where we used
LED lamps for the first time, for a 160 m tall
building, whose construction material is visible
at day time, but at night, a luminous
framework of the built mass can be seen.
Can you briefly describe your passion for boats,
which stems from your great attraction for
the sea as a place of adventure and mystery.
A topic with much to discover. On a boat you
need: indicator lights (so you do not hit
against things), lights to create an atmosphere
(looking in the eyes of a lady), gala lights
(so also the invitees shine), these offer a true
service in the design of a very particular space.
I have designed boats ranging from 14 to 120
metres long, a test bench for other projects
in different environments which, like the sea,
we think we know the mysteries of, but which
still need to be explored in depth.
If you were asked to choose one building to
describe the synthesis of the didactic capacity
of light/architecture, what would you choose,
even a project by one of your colleagues?
Distant examples. I like all the works of Herzog
& de Meuron or Coop Himmelblau, however,
the Milan Duomo, be it lit up or not, with its
deep stained glass windows, tells a wonderful
story, you never reach the end of that abyss
of beauty, or the cross of the church of Santa
Maria delle Grazie, which is always illuminated
at the same hour, artificially, at sunset,
before the light it wasn’t there, now instead
it exists. Like a masterpiece.
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