Art work lighting
Jakarta 21st August 2013
One of the typical “last minute” additions in our lighting plans has to be artwork lighting. Time and again we are confronted with the fact that we have completed our lighting design and the only provision for the lighting of artworks is an experienced assumption on where the artworks are likely to be. The interior designer, architect or even landscape designer plans for artwork locations but generally we have no idea on how the art works are going to look like until very late in the project process and even then the indications are generic, like painting or statue. In my project meetings the last few days in Jakarta this came up again and considering the remaining short lead time to completing this project adding the art work lighting will be a little challenge. Not only as we have to add specialist lighting or reconfigure the lighting layout (and control circuiting) to suit, but also as because the whole specification and procurement process somehow needs to be adjusted and rushed to fit the “grand opening” schedule!.
Artworks come in all forms, shapes and sizes composed of different materials and colour schemes. Even the location of and generic artwork description being indicated as “painting can turn out to be a multitude of outcomes; in other words it could be one big painting or a couple of smaller ones roughly occupying the same space on the wall. It could be just a simple flat frame, but it could also turn out to be an immensely ornate one with a multi layered canvas of art components! Finding a middle way of planning your art lighting requires experience and also understanding how your lighting will interact and reflect/ bring out the artwork. Different materials and artwork compositions will require different approaches. Too often we just have some generic information, leaving us to figure out how to anticipate and provide adequate lighting. As it often happens (and as we did last night in another project) we walked the site with the artworks now in place and decided on realigning and adding lights to suit. A bit of an after-thought but then that’s what on site follow up, focussing, testing and commissioning is all about…in both cases we have the full support of the client. 🙂
Light Watch 4-138: Artworks come in all forms, shapes and sizes…some have lighting as the integrated concept
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