Surface Design Awards – Complete

• LIGHT + SURFACE - EXTERIOR 
  The innovative use of light and the way it is inextricably linked to surfaces, whether it’s the effect the light has on the surrounding surfaces or the materials used to create the light. 

This artistic light installation is designed as a permanent decoration for the forecourt of Orientkaj Station - a newly established metro station in the northern harbour of Copenhagen, an area currently undergoing significant urban development.
The municipality’s local building requirements demanded safety-enhancing basic lighting for the square and artistic lighting for both the square and the elevated railway of the metro. The basic lighting was provided by spotlights mounted on poles.
After the completion of the square, By & Havn (City & Harbour), tasked Light Bureau with developing a site-specific artistic lighting design. In collaboration with By & Havn, COBE architects, and the municipality of Copenhagen, Light Bureau began exploring possibilities for adding a lighting installation in the finished square.
The square is made of cast-in-situ concrete. The surface has a discreet, yet complex rippled texture, which unfortunately disappeared at night due to high illuminance from the spotlights. In addition to adding an artistic lighting installation to the square, Light Bureau aimed at revealing the cast finish of the concrete surface by lowering the light level and adding more contrast.
As a pre-condition for the project, the artistic lighting could only be established on the existing lighting poles, as it was not permitted to install fixtures on the elevated railway structure or in the finished square surface.
Several lighting solutions were considered, but none of them worked effectively from the 5 meters poles close to the elevated railway. This challenge led to the idea of a "Light Hack", involving the development of specially designed elements for the poles. These elements should have an artistic daytime appearance and add interesting light patterns to the space at night using the existing installation. The new lighting should furthermore improve the feeling of safety while beautifying the forecourt.
After several physical and digital prototypes, a solution with adjustable reflective steel leaves with individual patterns and colour themes was chosen. These leaves filter the light downwards onto the square and reflect some of it back onto the elevated railway.
In order to ensure a robust and durable installation, that can withstand the harsh environment next to the marina, Light Bureau investigated different materials, treatments, and compatibility methods during the research process. Light Bureau has specified all components and specially designed the leaves for the project.
The leaves feature four different themes, all inspired by the overarching narrative of "the old freeport", representing the harbour’s historical function as a duty-free zone for goods from around the world. The identity-creating themes drew inspiration from the old timber and cranes in the harbour, as well as waves and rings in the water, a reference to the ocean, and serving as a metaphor for the journey between the world's harbours.
The leaf patterns result in an interesting interplay of white light, coloured light, and shadows, that reduces the light intensity on the concrete surface and add contrast. Thereby the fine ripple structure of the casted concrete is enhanced, adding character to the urban space at night.
The steel leaves transform the ordinary poles with spotlights into aesthetic and unique sculptural elements on the square, while the light patterns and reflections at night create a playful and distinct identity for the area. The significant visual impact on both day- and night-time appearance of the square has improved the feeling of safety and orientation, turning the dull forecourt into an inviting and interesting urban space.
An existing bollard close to the square was replaced with an additional pole with spotlights and leaves in order to extend the artistic lighting to the entire square. Another reason for replacing the bollard was to avoid spilling light onto the new light patterns, which would have minimized their visual impact and disrupted the wholeness of the square.
Before the final development of the four lighting themes, two prototypes of the leaves were installed at the square. By & Havn sponsored a mobile coffee stand, and while enjoying a free cup of coffee, the local citizens and commuters were introduced to the concept. Based on this dialogue and the appearance of the prototypes, the patterns were adjusted and the colours chosen.
The light installation meets the high demands of Copenhagen Municipality, which will be responsible for maintaining the installation.
The artistic lighting was inaugurated during the Copenhagen Light Festival on February 3rd, 2023. The project had a total budget of DKK 700.000, - excl. VAT, including lighting consultancy services.

The leaf structure is made of 3 mm saltwater and acid-resistant stainless steel with a lifespan of several decades (AISI 316L quality 2B). The surface is electro-polished to make them highly reflective and to protect them against corrosion and oxidization. Steel was chosen as a basic component to ensure a sturdy construction, that does not bend and can withstand wind conditions on site.
The 3 mm clear plates are made of moulded acrylic with long durability and resistance towards chemicals including rain and saltwater. 6 different colours were selected to support the chosen conceptual themes.
The leaves are mounted on brackets made of 5 mm saltwater and acid-resistant stainless steel, allowing for tilt and turn of the leaves. The brackets are mounted on iGuzzini standard pole clamps.
The steel structure and acrylic plates are laser-cut and carefully glued together with Rotabond 2000 polymer glue that is used for mounting windows and facade panels. The result is a sculptural and very slim design.
The existing luminaires are LED spotlights (type iGuzzini Woody, wide flood optic, 37,7W, 4287,3lm, warm white light 3000K), that are mounted with iGuzzini standard pole clamps on the 5 m cylindrical poles. With the aim to remove unwanted spill-light and create well-focused light patterns on the surface, the standard reflectors have been painted mat black, which also decreases the discomfort glare when looking towards the leaves at night.
Different surface characteristics are used to create different lighting effects ranging from reflections to colourful interplay of light and shadow.

The lighting installation comprising 4 poles with each 3 spotlights and leaves produces 153 g CO2 / m2. Based on 4000 working hours per year.
The leaf element represents a simple, yet sophisticated way of altering the standard spotlighting for an urban space by both filtering and reflecting the light. As spotlight solutions are widespread throughout modern cities, it has significant potential as a simple and sustainable add-on without increasing energy consumption.
Consequently, other urban spaces can be illuminated using the same principles, creating their own unique night-time identities without the need for new fixtures, poles, or increased energy consumption. The leaf can easily be adapted to fit the characteristics and identity of a given space by means of materials, patterns and colours.

The fixtures are not designed to cast sharp shadows from objects placed in front of them. For sustainability reasons, we really wanted to reuse the already mounted iGuzzini Woody, wide flood optic fixtures, but they came with strongly faceted diffusers that broke up the shadow patterns of the metal leaves. After a lot of testing with different diffusers, painted in different colours at different levels of shininess, we concluded that a black matte-painted diffuser resulted in the sharpest patterns. This had the added effect of lowering glare when looking up at the leaves and minimizing contrast on the ground.
The droplet shape of the leaves was chosen to catch the most light possible from the fixtures while catching as little wind as possible. The leaves are placed directly beneath the fixture they interact with. The distance between fixture and leaf, and the vertical and horizontal rotation of the leaf are all adjustable. With so many variables, balancing the light on the ground with the light on the underside of the metro construction took a lot of simulation before production and a lot of adjustment on site. A large area covered by shadows and colours, results in softer shadows. Steep angles of attack by the light on the leaf affect distortion and sharpness of the pattern reflected on the underside of the metro construction. We ended up with the leaves relatively close to the fixtures as this still gave visually recognizable patterns while covering a large area of the square.

In the future it is planned to extend the elevated railway to the outer northern harbour. At that time the artistic lighting can easily be adapted to the new construction and urban spaces.