Client Barajas International Airport | Year 2006 |
Architect RSHP | Co-architect Estudio Lamela |
Daylight Design Arup | Photographer RSHP |
Project Team Jonathan Speirs | |
One of the world’s largest airports and winner of the Stirling Prize for Architecture by RSHP Barajas is a vast structure with all the complexities of a contemporary transport hub.
The sheer scale of the building demanded that lighting components be kept to a minimum for reasons of manageability, maintenance and budget. The brief also required us to minimise visual clutter and avoid the use of floor fixtures that would restrict the future flexibility of the building.
Our solution to these constraints was ingenious and simple. We devised a unique suspended mirror reflector system that allowed us to both illuminate the floor plane, and to provide a rhythmical glow to the roofs dynamic, undulating form.
For the lower areas, a special wide circular ceiling luminaire known as ‘the wok’ was developed, drawing the eye away from the concrete soffit and services above, negating the need for a suspended ceiling and resulting in significant financial savings.