Unexpected Moments
Something that catches your attention and makes you react, interact, think, perceive or experience something differently can create a small moment of joy. This may be the playful use of colour in an otherwise calm context or the programmed animation of light that appears and then disappears. These moments elevate our experience of the environment, providing captivating and memorable moments.
In the K11 Art and Cultural Centre, Hong Kong meticulously integrated and dynamically programmed light cascades down the glazed façade like an eruption of fireworks appearing from nowhere.
UK television Channel 4's Big 4 sign featured umbrellas transformed with light into a joyous kaleidoscope of colour.
Thoughtful Connections
While light often plays an important role in helping us connect with our immediate environment, it can occasionally encourage us to detach from our surroundings into a place of contemplation.
Programmed content for a temporary light art piece called "HALF-LIFE" for the Kings Cross Tunnel, London engaged daily commuters over a period of weeks, evolving and dissolving in response to the typical walking pace down the tunnel and evoking a moment of contemplation in their busy commute.
Light can support a moment of pause and reflection, offering respite from busy surroundings or the hectic pace of life. Just as gazing into a fire can free the mind from distractions, some lit environments can foster moments of deep connection, magically dislocated from their context.
High levels of lighting contrast create a contemplative environment with a singular focus, facilitating inward thought with minimal distraction.
Spatial Transformation
Light has the power to change our perception of a space completely. By adjusting the balance of intensities and quality of light across different surfaces and materials, we can create dramatic transformations in the perceived dimension, volume, and ambience of a space.
The lighting scenes we designed for the monastery in Pannonhalma, Hungary, completely transform the space's perceived form and focus. They provide cues for visitors' behaviour and indicate time for quiet contemplation, communal gathering, or wondrous appreciation.
Light can also amplify the impact of the environment to create a magically immersive experience, transforming an ordinary space into something spectacular.
For the South Park at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic, London, we created a magical experience of walking through the avenue of trees, amplifying the effect of dappled light falling through the tree canopies to fill the entire pathway.
You can read Part 4 here.