Light and Sound – Light Revealing Experience

The way that we experience light is tied to almost every single aspect of our lives. From the moment we wake up in the morning to the time we fall asleep at night, light plays a part in every second of every single day. Sunlight is what wakes most of us up in the morning, as it is a reminder to us that it is a brand new day. Our experience of light is what makes our world so familiar, or unfamiliar.

                Electrical lighting takes a part in the way we experience this life as well. It is sometimes distracting us from the way we experience night and day through the changing of the seasons. It can also affect our mood and psyche as well as our cultures as a whole. I know I am personally happier when the sun is shining brightly, than on a dim, cloudy, dreary day.

                In the article "Light Revealing Experience", Richard Kelly designated three types of light for design purposes: focal glow, ambient luminescence, and play of brilliance. I found it extremely poetic and interesting the way he describes the 3 types: "Focal glow is the campfire of all time... it commands attention and attracts interest.... ambient luminescence is a snowy morning in open country... Play of brilliance is Times Square at night... it is the Aurora Borealis...". This description assures that you can literally imagine what he means, and allows you to really feel his passion for what he was describing. His description truly, as said in the article, turns physical structures into places with deeper meaning.

                Light absolutely defines a place. It is what creates the feeling for the space being occupied. The color of the light flooding a room can make a room either feel warm or cold, inviting or uninviting. This can not only be determined by artificial lighting but the natural light that seeps through the openings of structures. Sitting in Gatewood studio all day keeps you awake and alert because you are overtaken by the amount of natural lighting, even on a cloudy day.

                The geographical location of a place directly affects the types of light you get at different times of the day throughout the year. For example, living on the east coast most of my life I am used to getting up to see the sunrise over the water, while on the west coast you see the sun fall. The brightest sunlight we see is at the peak of the morning, when the birds are still chirping. But on the west coast you get this light at different times of the day. Similar sun patters are found throughout the world, they are defined by the myriad patterns of the changing seasons.

                Similar to the connection between light and spirit of a place is light and culture. Many cultures are in a sense defined by the light and climate they experience. The Japanese are more custom to having shadows and darkness. Tanizaki describes in his book "And so it has come to be the beauty of a Japanese room depends on variation of shadows". Their necessity for shadow is a direct response to their extremely hot summer climates they have. They use paper paneled doors, called Shoji, which may emit light but naturally, does not block sound nor protect them from the bitter cold of the winter.

                Another culture that is defined by their response to light, are the Netherlands. Their windows take up so much of the wall space in their homes that you can see directly through to their back courtyards. Light is very valued in Dutch culture because of its such northern location, light equals heat.

                Light is also defined by the task that is demanded within the structure. Libraries for example need certain lighting to be able to read comfortably. Work desks and rooms need different types of lighting individually. Another interesting type of light to consider as it relates to task is a dark room. You need certain types of dim lighting to expose film properly.

                Light can also be used as a poetic tool in illustrating a room. It can change the way we thing or bring us away from the places we are, even to a place we may have been. Frank Lloyd Wright provided relationships between inside and out in some of his residential work.

                The interaction between light and climate has to do with the spirit of a place, as it relates to the thermal comfort, as well as culture, and the geographical location. Light and heat share a connection of thermal comfort. My parents home in Summerfield, North Carolina has vast windows in the front and back of the house that stretch two stories. Year round you can feel the heat from the light shining down through them. This article states that in the window, the genius loci is thus explained and focused. Through the interpretation of the window, we can further understand the architecture of different cultures, and how it is affected by the climate. Architects and designers are tasked with providing a balance of light both visually and physiologically.

                The visual effect of lighting can also mentally and physically warm a place up. In northern climates, flooding a room with lighting can instantly add a sense of heat and sparkle to an otherwise cold and dreary space. For a designer to appropriately achieve a comfortable visual effect, there must be a certain balance of natural and artificial lighting that is specific to the individual place.

                Lastly, light is directly associated with time. Beginning with the Mayans, whom created a yearly calendar based on the rotation of the sun. We associate time every day with daylight and night fall.  Certain geographical locations however, Alaska for example, experience certain times of the year with 24 hour sunlight. That is something I don't think I could get used to. I would literally stay up all night.