Lighting Engines

| Prompt: hanging out with others in a living room

11.11.2020 | Research & Experimentation

In class reflection (what does the space make you feel/think about?):

To some, hanging out in the living room might have a negative or uncomfortable connotation of maybe it indicates some sort of formal event in which you are hosting people or are being hosted, but my mind thinks of hanging out with friends.

When I think of the role of lighting and lighting fixtures in different social situations or when hanging out with people, for some reason it makes sense in my mind that the less light there is, the more intimate the situation is. For example, having no light in the room would usually only occur when you are asleep in bed next to someone. Slightly above that may be a soft candle light at a romantic dinner for two, which is almost in darkness. A formal situation, perhaps maybe hosting a dinner party at your house with acquaintances, would require bright lights in the dining or living room.

So I think the lighting that is appropriate for hanging out in the living room really just depends on who you are in the room with. But I guess to me it makes more sense that you are hanging out with close friends and family, in which case some sort of lighting situation in between the ones I mentioned makes the most sense. Not super bright, but not too soft either. Warm, ambient light so that people are comfortable and feel relaxed when talking and hanging out, but not so soft and dark that they might doze off to sleep, although that wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing if you’re relaxed.

Hanging in the living room is the ultimate comfort of sitting on the couch and either talking with your favorite people or watching TV with them or playing games.

11.16.2020 | Sketch Models

11.17.2020 | Discussion + Revise Sketch Models

11.18.2020 | Further Exploration