A series of hands-on experiential events that has been intended to facilitate a learning process by creating a long-term relationship between students and professionals
Inspired by a growing world of lighting workshops such as Lights in Alingsås and the Society for Light and Lighting’s Ready-Steady-Light, the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD) Light Workshops are a series of hands-on experiential learning events intended to facilitate long-term connections between students and professionals in a collaborative, fun and educational environment. Designed as a model for teaching the lighting design process, these three-day workshops are essentially a collective of light installations leading to a holistic understanding of the lighting design process, while adding a level of excitement to this often intensive and technical subject.
Focused on enabling budding architects to explore light-humans-space relationships using state-of-the-art lighting technology, these workshops publicly demonstrate how built environments can be enhanced through good lighting. Taking place at university campuses, each team of students works side-by-side with professional lighting mentors to conceptualise their designs through innovative story lines and sketches that either use existing built elements within their allotted site, or additional props to bring their ideas to life. Once installed, the campus community and public are invited to view and admire the temporary installations that incorporate a mix of lighting techniques, luminous colours and luminaire technologies. The evening ends with a celebratory dinner where each team is invited to present their light concepts.
Between the years 2016 and 2017, eight workshops were conducted in cities across India namely Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi and Mumbai. In total, more than 1,500 students and 90 lighting professionals have participated and benefited from these events; more than USD 9,00,000 worth of loaned lighting toolkits have been generously sponsored; and with overall spends below USD 3,000 per workshop, the compact and cost-effective nature are key to its success. So much so, that these workshops have generated a lot of interest for replication in towns and cities around the world: the most recent workshop being conducted in Amman, Jordan in 2019 and Manipal, India in 2020. The following descriptions are the results of those two recent workshops.
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IALD Light Workshop 2019 Series # 1
Dates: 28th-29th March 2019
Location: Amman/JORDAN
Theme: Celebrating 20 years of King Abdullah II’s accession to the throne
City Coordinator: Alla Filipovich
Sponsors: Al Hani Lighting, ArtLight & Huda Lighting
Lighting Designer: Dr. Amardeep M. Dugar
Photographs: Abd Al Majeed Shaheen
Inspired by its huge success in India, the IALD Light Workshops Series for the first time was tested overseas in the city of Amman, Jordan. The aim was to create a never-before-seen experience by exposing the beauty of selected places that remain unseen during day and revealing them with a new perspective. The objective was to create conceptual designs in public realm that offers a feel-good atmosphere for the inhabitants and visitors of the city of Amman.
As the larger goal of the workshop was to celebrate the auspicious occasion of the 20th anniversary of His Majesty King Abdullah II’s ascension to the throne, the chosen workshop sites had a strong connection to the royal family. Students and entry-level architects were guided by experts to co-create full-scale lighting sceneries. Trained technical staff also ably supported the participants.
Site-1: King Talal’s House
Concept: Life through Light
This was the residence where King Abdullah II’s father King Hussein spent his childhood and formative years. This under-construction site is now being developed into a museum. The concept was to highlight the life of the young king through light. The outside and the inside as well as the different sections of the house such as the entrance and the king’s bedroom were highlighted with different colour temperatures.
Site-2: Parliamentary Life Museum
Concept: The story of light and shadows echo
This site had great political significance because it was used as the meeting place for the legislative council and two kings took their oath of office. The concept was to resonate the echo of the people through different shadows on the building entrance and façade.
Sites-3 and 4: Islamic Educational College Clock Tower and Gate
Concept: Sun of the Night
This site is one of the oldest private schools in the country where all the princes of the royal family pursued their education. As the clock tower and gate signify the Hashemite vision of developing a strong educational sector for the emergent kingdom, light was used to transform these buildings into a beacon of knowledge and hope.
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IALD Light Workshops 2020 Series # 1
Dates: 21st – 22nd February 2020
Location: Manipal/INDIA
Theme: Designing Thinking with Architectural Lighting
City Coordinators: Anusha Muthusubramanian & Suma Khandige
Sponsors: Balika, Gojis Lifestyle, Illuminate Lighting, Leksa Lighting, Lighting Technologies & StudioPlus
Lighting Designers: Dashak Agarwal, Tejas Doshi, Poorvi Kamath, Harshita Shetty, Kunal Shah & Dr. Amardeep M. Dugar
Institutional Partner: Manipal School of Architecture & Planning (MSAP)
Knowledge Partner: Indian Society of Lighting Engineers (ISLE)
Photographs: Workshop Participants
Inspired by a growing world of lighting workshops such as Lights in Alingsås and the Society for Light and Lighting’s Ready-Steady-Light, the IALD Light Workshops are a series of hands-on experiential learning events intended to facilitate long-term connections between students and professionals in a collaborative, fun and educational environment. Designed as a model for teaching the lighting design process, these three-day workshops are essentially a collective of light installations leading to a holistic understanding of the lighting design process, while adding a level of excitement to this often intensive and technical subject.
The Manipal School of Architecture & Planning (MSAP), a constituent of Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), offers courses in Architecture, Urban Design, Interior Design, Fashion Design, Management and Sustainable Design at undergraduate and post-graduate level. MSAP believes in honing the design thinking skill of designers with theoretical as well as practical problem-solving modules suited to the context and people in the built environments. The 10th IALD Light Workshop conducted at MSAP specifically catered to this belief of honing the design thinking skills of budding architects and designers with architectural lighting.
Site-1: Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT) Entrance
Concept: Galaxy far from Home
MIT is treated as a galactic system where the students are its stars and stellar remnants gravitationally bound to this system. Each of the architectural elements in the site namely the façade, murals, trees, etc. is provided appropriate stellar lighting treatment in order to express this concept.
Site-2: Academic Block 5
Concept: History of Manipal
The town of Manipal gained prominence in the mid-1950s, when its founder Dr. T.M.A. Pai founded the Kasturba Medical College, MIT and 21 other colleges, which ultimately became a part of MAHE. The lighting provides an experiential journey about the trails, tribulations and finally the success of its founder.
Site-3: MSAP Entrance and Terrace
Concept: Flash
Flash is a term used to describe a time warp using coloured light and shadows whereby people are taken through a journey of past, present and future. Concepts of additive and subtractive colour mixing are used extensively to propel this journey.
Site-4: MSAP Lower Foyer
Concept: The Heart of MSAP
As the architecture foyer acts as the heart of MSAP, the concept is that of a “beating heart.” It has been divided into four spaces based on activity following the concept of the four chambers of the heart. The furniture lighting acts as a connecting point between the circulation to depict veins and vessels.
Site-5: MSAP Faculty Wing
Concept: Reverie
Reverie is a state of dreamy meditation or fanciful musing. Considering the restrictions of the space, the variety of mini-installations with light ascribe to the constant state of daydream the students of architecture and design are under due to the stress of submissions and exams.
Site-6: Innovation Centre Courtyard
Concept: The Bard
In ancient times Bards were poets and storytellers revered as custodians and keepers of tradition. In this context, lighting plays the role of the bard to tell stories about how students experience growth, hardships and success.
