Let There Be Light: This Year’s Innovators in Luminous Architecture

No matter what shape or size a building, how architecture interacts with light and shade can transform a space from a beautiful building to an ethereal and memorable one. In recent times, architects have been playing with light as an integral feature of a building’s life through a variety of ways, from graphic and colorful light installations that forge atmospheric interiors to strategically positioned openings that filter in natural light for subtle warmth.

It comes as no surprise, then, that experimentation with lighting was a recurring theme among this year’s A+ Award Finalists. Below are seven projects that showcase some of the most creative ways designers used light to add elements of dynamic attractions in their projects. Take a gander and make sure to pick up a copy of the 2016 A+Awards book to peruse all of this year’s winners.

Culture House by Primus Architects, Allerød, Denmark

Patterns of integrated lighting on the façade of the Culture House accentuates the texture of the building. The staggered lights against the dark color creates a vertical fluidity on the building exterior.

Das GERBER by Ippolito Fleitz Group – Identity Architects, Stuttgart, Germany

Light was a key theme for the interior design of this commercial space. A system of intertwining rings creates a signature look. The light rings direct viewers’ eyes towards the heart of the mall where they entwine a column and extend upwards to form a tree of light that illuminates all three stories.

City View Garage by IwamotoScott Architecture, Miami, Florida

The City View Garage is a collaboration of IwamotoScott Architecture, Leong Leong and Southern California based artist John Baldessari. During the day time, natural light either filters in through or is reflected off the texture screen façade. At night, the unique perforated skin of the building creates a warm, subtle glow.

Unilux by Michel Abboud for SOMA, Beirut, Lebanon

The architects created an immersive, parametric space for a showroom for a lighting fixture supplier in Lebanon. The spliced volumes of the interior allow light to reflect on a dynamic surface.

The Kindergarten of the German School by Potiropoulos+Partners, Athens, Greece

Fit for a school for young children, the windows of this kindergarten protrude like play blocks. At night time, the light reflects on the green faces of these blocks, giving the building exterior a graphic yet playful look.

Naman Pure Spa by MIA Design Studio, Da Nang, Vietnam

The pattern of the screen façade envelope of this spa allows natural light and shadows to flood the interior spaces. What’s most unique is a “curtain” of plants that casts beautiful and organic shadows to create an ethereal and calming space.

Want to own the year’s best architecture? Order your copy of the 2016 A+Awards Book today, presented by Phaidon.