Moreover..

In the beginning of my research paper, I set out to find how natural light effects the decisions in layout design and how or if it was consciously done in previous eras and as I come to conclude my essay I can say that the questions I was asking were answered quite adequately. From Baker and Steemers book I was able to pinpoint the historical aspect from Vitruvius’s ideology and followed natural light’s evolution through recorded facts.

The crucial aspect of my essay that formed my argument and answered questions that I set out to find was when in Wilson and Tregenza’s book Daylight and Architecture and Lighting Design, the authors stated that

“There is no universal criteria of daylight quantity. What is found to be satisfactory depends on the function of the building, its architectural nature and the culture of the users” (Tregenza and Wilson, 2011 p.16).

With this information I shaped my own thinking towards lighting design as there are other important factors at play such as the building itself and the occupant that are the fundamental aspects when designing an interior; therefore they also are a fundamental aspect to strategic natural light. 

Light Diffused Through Material

Another case study in Plummer’s book that was fascinating was the Christus Pavilion designed by Meinhard; one which I did not add to my research paper as I discussed residential orientation and the Pavilion is not; nevertheless it is a marvelous design which I was quite content to learn about.    

As seen from the photographs above different shadows penetrate the interior of the building this is done through the use of different diffusers. The pass structure of each section is double sided and between the glass material is placed to produce the interior visual effect. The materials between the glass differ from natural and industrial materials such as screws, feathers, sand, coal, cables and so on. 

Light Diffused Through Structure

In Henry Plummer’s book The Architecture of Natural Light (2009) I was able to understand and to see different various examples of the way designers and architects diffused the intensity of natural light through creative smart well designed strategies. Two particular case studies that caught my immediate attention were the ‘Lattice Light House’ designed by Shoei Yoh 1981 and the Christus Pavilion designed by Meinhard Von Gerkan.

The ‘Lattice Light House’ consists of vertical and horizontal thin slabs pierced into the structure of the house itself that allows natural light to penetrate the interior from that small area as an access point creating a pattern of interesting shadows in the interior.

Lattice Light House. 

The grid like pattern formed on the interior walls change drastically with the sun’s path during the day creating rhythm and pattern throughout the space. The elegant lines create a minimalistic look to the interior. The interior orientation of the space consists of a living area as seen from the photographs yet unfortunately no information was available to be able to understand how the designer came to such a conclusion; by creating such diffusers and by applying that strategy for a living area. I was able to add this particular case study in my essay due to the indication of space that was orientated in that area yet I could not share any insight of why it was orientated that way.

Reference List;

Henry Plummer, HP., 2009. The Architecture of Natural Light. 181A High Holborn, London :Thames and Hudson Ltd.

New Materials - Industrial Revolution

As time passed; natural light evolved and was used mostly through access points that were prominent in that time such as the vaults in the Gothic Revival and so on. An era that is crucial in natural light’s evolution is the Industrial Revolution.

The Industrial Revolution drastically shaped society with its advantages and disadvantages through the new developed materials that were being mass produced. As history shows new materials such as iron and glass and so on were developed in the Industrial Revolution; these materials created endless possibilities for access points, the ideology created easier natural light intake. One can look at the Crystal Palace 1851; constructed solely out of glass and iron the interior would be flooded with natural light creating a more open space and due to the fact that the light would be accessing from more than one point of the building the intensity of the light would balance itself out, one side from the other reducing glare conditions yet not completely erasing them as the light would reflect and bonce from the glass into one’s vision that could still create glare.

Crystal Palace 1851 

 The disadvantages of this era is that due to the mass production of materials the quality of work lessened and the art of hand made objects was forgotten. Artificial Lighting was also introduced in the mist of all and due to the fascination of such an invention many architects and designers were overwhelmed with the endless possibilities one can produce; therefore when issue was risen due to the poor intake of natural light instead of fixing such an issue or finding possible solutions many turned to artificial lighting thus overlooking natural light.  

Roman Pantheon

While the Greeks utilized a measurement tool to be able to calculate how sunlight penetrates the interior, the Romans executed a bold design that resulted in a well natural lit interior and a monumental building whose natural light’s application is still prominent to this very day. A Monumental architectural prominent building that has an effective strategic natural light application is the Roman Pantheon.

The Pantheon’s dome consists of an oculus that is pierced in the centre of the dome itself. By having natural light access the interior from the dome not only does this avoid any glare consequences but due to the movement of the sun due to space and time; the natural light moves across the planes of the dome creating a path and revealing different details of the interior at different times of the day. This strategy also gives a sense of hierarchy and dominancy to the building itself and by having the access point as the oculus in the highest peak of the building creates an open space as well.

The well executed design and natural light strategy for the Pantheon is an international treasure that shaped natural light’s historical context. 

Reference Links ;

Daylight Design of Buildings: A Handbook for Architects and Engineers - Nick Baker, Koen Steemers - Google Books. 2015. [ONLINE] Available at:https://books.google.com.mt/books?id=Eg6AAgAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false. [Accessed 24th April 2015].

Natural Lighting in Greek Interiors

As the Romans were aware of the thermal and luminance effect that Natural Light had on their dwellings and how they could orientate their interiors to the sun’s path in order to be able to use its natural substances at the appropriate time of the day and to the occupant’s advantage, the Greeks took a different course of action to be able to use natural light benefits in collaboration with their interior.

The orientation of the dwellings themselves were being designed to the east or west in order to allow the natural light to pierce the interior at its two most dominant peaks; the sunrise and the setting of the sun. The Greeks, in their temple interiors kept their cellas; the inner chamber of the temple at low exposure to natural light to keep the element of mystery. Although the focal point was kept at low light the intention was to use natural light to penetrate the statues that were placed in the interiors. This was their primary intention as when the natural light would reach the sculpture it would refine and show attention to the hidden details of the artwork itself therefore making the statues the dominant part of the interior.

To be able to foresee how natural light would affect the interior itself the Greeks made use of Helidons. Helidon is a device which can determine the sun angle that would penetrate the interior; to do so the helidon can be adjusted through three variables, the latitude, time of year and the time of day. As a device helidons are not theoretically clear in relation with the technological advances and knowledge one can access nowadays yet they were one of the first sun measuring systems that was utilized. This is a clear example of what techniques were used in the past in order to strategically use natural light in coordinate with the interior orientation. 

Helidon 

Reference Links ;

Daylight Design of Buildings: A Handbook for Architects and Engineers - Nick Baker, Koen Steemers - Google Books. 2015. [ONLINE] Available at:https://books.google.com.mt/books?id=Eg6AAgAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false. [Accessed 24th April 2015].

index. 2015. index. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.auburn.edu/~lechnnm/heliodon/. [Accessed 24^th April 2015].

The Birth of Consciously Utilizing Natural Light

One of the key elements in my essay was to be able to pinpoint when civilization was aware of the effect that natural light was projecting onto buildings and how it affected the interior both positively and negatively. Through my research for the ideal sources for reliable knowledge I came across a particular book ‘The Daylight Design of Buildings’ by Nick Baker and Koen Steemers; in which I was able to find the answers regarding my queries of natural light’s historical context.   

 

Baker and Steemers (2002)

Baker and Steemers (2002) stated that it was Vitruvius the well-known Roman architect who formed the connection between natural light and the buildings themselves. By coming to the realization of this ideology that a strong stable well orientated and understood relationship should be formed between the sun’s luminance and the dwelling was the stepping stone that formed natural light’s history. In their book Baker and Steemers were quoting Vitruvius who firstly started to logically state that the type of buildings built for Italy differ from the ones in Spain and other countries; apart from the cultural aspect of his reasoning Vitruvius was referring to locations, due to the variation of latitudes and longitudes the sun’s path when colliding with the countries would have a different impact through the intensity of the light itself along with the thermal effects.

After being consciously aware Vitruvius started applying his knowledge to his work keeping in mind the occupant and the building’s needs; after he would design a particular building Vitruvius would suggest the orientation of the space in co ordination with the sun’s path so that the occupant would be able to utilize the natural light at its peak time in a positive manner.

Reference Link :

Daylight Design of Buildings: A Handbook for Architects and Engineers - Nick Baker, Koen Steemers - Google Books. 2015. [ONLINE] Available at:https://books.google.com.mt/books?id=Eg6AAgAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false. [Accessed 21st April 2015].