What is Facade Lighting?
Facades are typically known as the principle front or the front facing exterior sides of the building. In architectural terms, they are one of the most important exterior design elements as they largely determine the overall feel of the structure. Furthermore, they play a crucial role in terms of light transmittance, acoustic performance and energy efficiency of a building.
Facades exert influence on achieving superior aesthetics, and this is where facade lighting comes into play. Illuminating facades with lights can transform a boring building into a real eye-catcher as it highlights the architecture and puts emphasis on key building features.
According to experts, gracefully lit buildings stand out and enhance the surroundings as well. Appropriate facade lighting creates a great first impression of the building that notably attracts the employees and customers.
What is the importance of facade lighting?
Well-planned facade lighting primarily helps in highlighting the main features of the building. Moreover, it can also be used to add an artistic feel to the exteriors with shadows. According to the top commercial lighting manufacturers, highlighting a feature makes it more visible while silhouetting provides entirely different results.
In silhouetting, the lights are placed behind an object for illuminating the backdrop. Furthermore, many architectural experts also use up-lighting for pillars and columns to add a simple contrast or to accentuate the object for making it the center of attraction.
Different types of facades and suggested lighting
Modern architectural plans are embellished with a variety of facade designs and lighting adds a vibe to it. According to the leading industrial lighting manufacturers, a facade design may seem different in shape or design when it is illuminated by natural lighting or artificial lighting during night. This changes its appearance throughout the day as the direction of light keeps changing.
Some types of facades and lighting suggestions include:
• Solid facades: A solid facade is referred to a smooth wall surface with no texture. These facades are primarily influenced by natural lighting conditions (sunlight). However, large and uniform surfaces can be provided with a definite structure and patterns of light.
• Vertically divided facades: Developers can use narrow beams of light to intensify the vertical division. They can also consider a combination of up-lights and downlights for augmenting the facade.
• Horizontally divided facades: Horizontal divisions can cast long and heavy shadows in the building’s facade. However, this can be reduced by increasing the offset of the luminaire from the facade.
• Perforated facades: A facade based on innovation that allows creative use of multiple lighting techniques. For instance, people can use Linear Wall Washer LED or Formz LED by Wipro Lighting for illuminating these charismatic covers.
Lighting the facades with a professional outdoor lighting solution fabricates dramatic effects that can enhance the night-time aesthetics of a commercial building. It complements the overall charm and adds a glamorous finishing touch to the building. For instance, people can decide on the Arcus range of facade lighting solutions by Wipro Lighting as they address all the functional requirements and highlight the surreal aesthetics of the surroundings after sunset.
