LC Blog
Light and Perception: "The Flynn Stuff"
January 5, 2012 at 9:27 PM by Dr. Robert Davis
One of my long-term fascinations in life has been to gain a better understanding of how light in architectural spaces affects our perceptions of those spaces. For me, this fascination began as a student at Penn State in the late 1970s, when I was privileged to take a course from Professor John Flynn. Flynn's research career was devoted to studying a full range of psychological impacts of architectural lighting. Interestingly, his findings were particularly relevant in the 70s, as we experienced our initial "energy crisis." Initial attempts to save energy by cutting back on lighting often resulted in gloomy, dim rooms that were unpleasant to be in and produced negative impressions. Flynn's work helped to demonstrate that lighting served a more important function than simply getting enough light onto a desktop, and that a holistic view of lighting was needed that acknowledged the impact of lighting on psychological comfort and well-being.
Flynn's work described both the STIMULUS of lighting, along with the RESPONSE of people experiencing the architectural environment. I will not take the time to go into all the details here - you can watch a video clip titled "Light Influences Perception" and read the white paper, "Cognitive and Emotional Responses to Lighting," for more detail - but in essence, Flynn showed us how changing the quality of lighting could affect our responses. For example, his studies documented that an impression of spaciousness is strongly reinforced by adding uniform wall lighting. And he showed that a space with lower-level ambient lighting and supplemental wall lighting was rated as much more pleasant and interesting than a space with just a high level of overhead diffuse lighting.
Uniform Wall Lighting = Spaciousness
Today we face issues and concerns in architectural lighting that are much like those faced in the 1970s. The rush to reduce power densities for lighting, while well-intended, threatens to limit the designer's ability to address the holistic needs of the people for whom the space is intended. Reducing lighting energy is promoted as part of a sustainable design ethos - but if the result is spaces that are unpleasant and uncomfortable, is that truly sustainable? Does sustainable lighting have to be equal to "just barely adequate" lighting?
Are we facing a future in which we repeat the mistakes of the past?
I believe that with today's technologies, we can provide lighting solutions that address the holistic needs of everyone using the spaces being designed, while meeting power budgets. But it does not happen automatically. And it does not happen by cutting back on the wall lighting and accent lighting that is sometimes seen as an unnecessary luxury, when in fact it is the very thing needed to make our spaces truly sustainable.
What do you think?
For the full AIA accredited "Lighting the Spatial Envelope" course, presented by Dr. Bob Davis, go to continuingarchitect.com.
