// COMMERCIAL // INDUSTRIAL
REGULARS: ROOFING MATTERS
Sculpting your environment with natural light
The concept of light architecture, refers directly to the focus on the element of natural light, as a priority in the design process of a building.
By Dayne Scrowther, Danpal architectural consultant, South Africa | Photos by Danpal
This focus is then translated in real terms, during the construction phase of a project, by using materials and systems which create an interior space that benefits directly from natural daylight.
Key benefits of designing and building with natural daylight in mind include savings on heating, ventilation and air conditioning( HVAC) systems and artificial lighting, a greener building and the creation of a high-quality environment interior space.
Daylighting and architectural movements in the past
The German art school, Bauhaus, was responsible for a paradigm shift in the design of buildings and continues to influence designers today. One of the most influential Bauhaus themes is the role of light in shaping interior spaces and manifesting concepts. In Bauhaus thinking, light and transparency signify openness, freedom, democracy, coherence and health. This translates into designs that use a lot of glass, allowing natural light to flow into buildings and connecting the interior to the world outside.
Bauhaus luminaries with a particular interest in light include Australian-German artist, Ludwig Hirschfeld-Mack who demonstrated the way coloured light mixed to form white light; and American-German artist, Josef Albers, who used shadow and light to‘ sculpt’ space.
Hungarian painter and photographer and professor in the Bauhaus school, László Moholy-Nagy, believed that art only acquired meaning when it reflected light.
Sports Hall in China, fitted with light architecture.
His ideas inspired generations of architects, artists and designers far beyond Bauhaus and his own lifetime. For example, French- Swiss architect, Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, known as Le Corbusier, believed in the importance of windows as a means of channelling natural light into interior spaces. His fenêtre en longeur – or long horizontal window – has become an architectural archetype.
Some daylighting design benefits today
• Greater client awareness of sustainability and the health-related benefits of naturally lit environments.
• Natural light is perceived to be as important as internal useable square footage, leading to more exciting spaces with interconnecting vertical connections.
• Technological advances in thermally efficient thin-framed glazing, allow architects to explore a greater variety of envelopes and apertures.
• The intrusion of solid framing elements has been reduced, allowing for purer sculptural forms.
The most effective strategies for engaging natural light
• Carefully consider how light enters, illuminates and animates a building and the physiological effect it can have on the occupants of each space.
• Take inspiration from natural light in nature and art, and keep returning to natural light in sacred architecture.
• Start by exploring the different ways to get natural light into a building and balance these with functional and spatial requirements.
• Consider the materials of each element and how the light will play across them and how they add to the visual understanding of the building.
26 RESIDENTIAL
APRIL 2018