Extra event puts architecture in the spotlight
The first thing to note about the upcoming LuxLive event is that, unlike previous years, it’s not one but two shows – which should give architects an added reason to visit.
A completely new event, lightspace dot london, seeks to shed some, ahem, light on the subject from a specifically architectural angle, featuring two days of curated content from key designers and artists working in the field today. Here you’ll find practitioner and teacher Ben Adams discussing why it’s so difficult to get a lighting designer appointed; and Andreas Schulz, lighting designer to a number of big European cultural projects including the MuCEM Marseilles and Frankfurt’s Städel Museum. Designer Dean Skira, meanwhile, will link light and landscape, talking on his Cikat Bay project in Croatia, which includes a network of illuminated floating ‘jellyfish’. Rogier van der Heide, chief designer at Zumtobel, will expound on his notion of ‘Darkitecture’, exploring the important role of contrast in contemporary spaces. Given the over-illumination UK cities seem to suffer from, this seems particularly prescient. With others looking at how materials react in light, and light’s significance to religion, it looks like a stimulating group of speakers, something even Gottfried Semper might have found interesting, so certainly worth popping along to if you’re there.
Rogier van der Heide, chief designer at Zumtobel, will expound on his notion of ‘Darkitecture’, exploring the important role of contrast in contemporary spaces
In the main hall it’s business as usual with LuxLive. In the three public arenas here, seminars will concentrate more on the technical, regulation and guidance aspects of the sector. Expect to find events on cutting-edge topics, such as Cisco’s explanation of how powering light fittings through Ethernet cables is going to revolutionise lighting control, the state of OLED lighting development and a Dragon’s Den looking at innovations like hydrogen powered light and one that claims to run on no energy at all.
The end of the second day will see the annual Lux Awards being dished out to the best examples of lighting in the business, including the winner of the ‘Young Lighter of the Year’ for research papers on the subject. But before the day one closing party I’m intrigued by the inaugural ‘Bad Lighting Awards’; rewarding the most overlit, underlit, shadowy, glary and otherwise generally appalling examples of lighting that can be found from around the country. I’ve already seen some examples in the press release and, like the ubiquitous rat, they are nearer than you think!
LuxLive and lightspace dot london are at ExCel London on 18-19 November 2015
PIP takes a look at a selection of products exhibiting at this year’s show...
Aurora Lighting
Flat panel
Aurora is playing the numbers game with its latest flat panel, which unlike most of its competitors boasts a colour rendering index of 95, rather than around 80. Back in the psychedelic sixties of course this wouldn’t have been much of a selling point, as we liked colours and shapes to morph into one another and turn into things that they weren’t. It was crazy man!! Now that’s embarrassingly yesterday, and we like to know where we are. This is just the ticket to see exactly what’s going on.
Stand K6
gb.auroralighting.com
MARL
Quantum dot LED
It’s Darth Vadar’s lightsaber again, left by all those Halloween trick or treaters rampaging through the streets demanding sweets with menaces. Actually, it’s no such thing, simply a quantum dot LED light that does, nonetheless, share one very important thing with old Darth’s organ: tiny crystals of semiconductor material that work like phosphors in LED lighting, converting blue light to other colours. So when you’re going over to the dark side, the Orion QD can create just the mood you need.
Stand K26
leds.co.uk
Fagerhult
Itzu luminaire
Nowadays, it’s pointless to put out a press release for any design that doesn’t include either the word ‘sustainable’ or ‘minimalist’. Well, luckily for Fagerhult, the Itzu luminaire is both. So slim and white you can hardly see it, like those waif-like models of yesteryear, but, unlike them, it’s healthily sustainable, so that you should barely notice its presence on your electricity bill. And that sustainability has two aspects, as being ‘trend neutral’, it shouldn’t fall out of fashion, like models can.
Stand S24
fagerhult.com
iguzzini
Laser downlight
‘Excellent performance in a miniaturised body...’ Goodness, there must be so many uses for that enticing phrase... though here we’re talking not The Boss Mr Springsteenbut something more illuminating. It might look like an inter galactic capsule, but this is actually the Laser indoor downlight and the 75mm version is the big one – the smallest is a titchy 17mm across. The PR says it decorates rooms discreetly and elegantly, but at that size what wouldn’t be discreet? Well, certainly not The Boss.
Stand P15
iguzzini.com