color test: 6500k / 4200k fluorescents
Zweimal Gelebt
competition short list
2007
The proposal is a shading canopy in front of the Princeton University School of Architecture that doubles as an after-hours lighting installation, playing off of the ‘natural’ lighting conditions that the new facade attempts to filter. The installation produces a delayed sunset not only for those who missed the first one due to an irregular sleeping routine, but also for those greedy for seconds. Like the hovering glow of a gas station or a bug lamp, the installation attracts and slows traffic in what would otherwise be merely a thoroughfare.
The engineered glow of the tubes are cast against the natural field of skylight, yielding a range of visual phenomena over a daily cycle. During the day, the device shades. Then, as twilight sets, the fluorescents compensate for and replace the diminishing natural sunshine. They brighten towards the peak activity of the building – usually around 9PM, although this would be measured electronically – when all bulbs glow with full force. Then the sunlight bulbs start to dim, leaving only the low chartreuse glow of the 'moonlight' bulbs over the course of the night.