Description
Natural light and the design of artificial lighting have a fundamental effect on the atmosphere of sacred spaces. Light and shadow determine the spatial qualities of a space; when used in the right amount at the right time and in the right place, light can accentuate, direct attention, create an atmosphere of contemplation and composure, foster togetherness in prayer, or underline the solemnity or festiveness of an occasion.
Christian theology is a theology of light. God is regarded as the creator of light, and believers in God have been called “out of the darkness into His marvellous light”. In the revelation to John, the radiance of the holy city of Jerusalem is attributed to the glory of God who is portrayed as “illuminating” the city (Revelation, 21:11; 21:23; 22:5). This theology of light is the foundation of lighting design for churches.
Daylight has always been a key aspect in the design of sacred spaces. In Egyptian temples, the processional route led through a hypostyle hall growing ever darker before reaching the cult images, which were illuminated only on certain days by the rising sun, appearing magnificently out of the darkness. Similarly, only a few small windows puncture the mighty walls of Romanesque domes, sending rays of light through the darkness that were thought to come from God directly. In the 12th and 13th centuries, light was thought to be the source and actual essence of all that is beautiful. The walls of Gothic cathedrals made way for glorious coloured glass windows, a fusion of the immaterial – light – and the material, of the heavenly and the man-made. During the baroque period, the control of light in churches was taken to perfection, a high point in the orchestration of light in architecture. Transparent glass windows allowed light to flood into the interiors of churches, lighting up the frescos on the ceiling, modelling the plasterwork and illuminating the altar, behind which in some churches a yellow-coloured radiating gloriole shone from on high.
Daylight can be employed as a diffuse, soft light without shadows or as a strong directed light that casts sharp shadows. Daylight determines how a sacred space and the points of liturgical activities are perceived. The amount and direction of light can be used to focus orientation during the service or to create a place for silent prayer. Daylight can lend sacred spaces a spiritual atmosphere. Light can be used to give focus to a particular spot in an otherwise open space or to emphasise sacred meaning. Shadows can punctuate space. Complex interactions between light sources from several openings can create layered spaces, while soft diffuse light can lend spaces an appearance of weightlessness. Daylight can model spaces, changing how they appear with each hour of the day from morning to noon to evening. Every opening changes the character of a space, depending on whether it is placed in the centre of a wall, in the corner of a room or in the ceiling. And, unlike artificial light, sunlight is available every day, free and dependably, modulated only by the seasons, time of day and weather.
In the context of climate change, the use of daylight should also be considered in terms of energy efficiency. Sacred spaces in which services are celebrated in artificially lit surroundings fail to exploit not only the design possibilities but also the energy of sunlight. The degree to which daylight contributes to the illumination of interiors is expressed by the daylight factor. This is calculated as the proportion of brightness in an interior compared with the brightness outdoors on an overcast day. Comprising a sky component, an external reflected component and an internal reflected component, the daylight factor is a constant value for every point in a room. In temperate climates, the brightness of the sky varies considerably. Unlike in warmer climates, the size and arrangement of openings in churches must make the most of the lower light levels of overcast skies rather than direct sunlight. Effects resulting from direct sunlight – strong shadows, glare and heat gain – only happen on sunny days. In countries that are regularly exposed to strong sunlight, the direct incidence of sunlight can be regulated through the use of smaller openings and suitable orientation, through external shading mechanisms or selective glazing that offer good light transmission but restrict energy transmission.
The daylight factor can be calculated during the design process and the daylight illumination simulated using a model. The daylight factor determines the lower limit of daylight illumination. Depending on the orientation, the position of the windows with respect to the points of the compass and the kind of glazing, areas can result that are either very light or in shadow. If the daylight factor is high, less artificial lighting is required: for a daylight factor of 1 percent in a church with windows, supplementary artificial lighting will be required for church services; for a factor of between 2 and 4 percent, church services can be held without the need for artificial lighting. To achieve a sufficient level of daylight illumination it is also necessary to ensure that light is consistent, that it is glare-free. The degree of shadow and the direction of the incident light must also be considered.
The amount of daylight and glazing in a church fundamentally determines the character of a space. The kind of glazing can be used as a design element that influences how open or closed a wall appears; it can also be a bearer of meaning. In deep spaces, light ceilings and flanking walls help to illuminate a space evenly. They contribute positively to the atmosphere of a space and increase the daylight factor. Sacred spaces that are lit from both sides ensure that the centre of the space, in most cases the focus of liturgical activities, is well lit and that the faces of the congregation are easily discernible. Windows in contemporary churches are rarely arranged in the traditional manner (for example, rows of rectangular or arched windows), but rather in unusual forms or arrangements so that particular lighting situations and effects result: in Álvaro Siza’s Santa Maria Church in Marco de Canaveses (1996), three windows are arranged high up beneath the ceiling, recessed in the inward curve of the northwest wall. The light is reflected off the white surface of the interior.
The perimeter walls of Heinz Tesar’s Donau City Church in Vienna (2000) are perforated with a regular pattern of smaller and larger round windows. They are supplemented by cubes of light of different sizes that are cut into the corners of the rectangular space and fill the space with light, emphasising the font and the tabernacle. Clad in light birch and sugar-maple, the space shines like a golden shrine encrusted in precious jewels. The altar is additionally emphasised by a rooflight cut into the ceiling in a shape that symbolises the wound inflicted on Christ on the cross.
In the pilgrimage church of Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp (1955), Le Corbusier experimented with different-sized openings cut like deep incisions into the south wall. Sunlight streams into the space in white and coloured bands through the panes on which a prayer is written. The icon of the Virgin Mary is arranged in a glazed box in the east wall, so that in the morning the sun shines inwards from behind the figure of Mary. The curving roof is separated from the walls on the east and south side by a narrow 10 centimetre wide slot of light. Light entering through the slot grazes the underside of the concrete ceiling so that the heavy protective roof appears to float.
New means of construction using steel and reinforced concrete and the industrial production of large panes of glass have made it possible to open entire surfaces of spaces. Techniques such as the sandblasting, etching, coating, melting, printing, spraying and painting of float glass offer new design possibilities. Heavily structured or tinted glass surfaces as well as translucent surfaces made of thin stone panels or matt glass provide a form of spatial enclosure, whereas transparent glazing provides a light and clear illuminated space and connects an interior with its surroundings. An example is St Canisius Church in Berlin by Büttner Neumann Braun (2002), whose glazed frontage opens out onto an enclosed outdoor space to the south. Different forms of modulated daylight enter indirectly via a concealed translucent glass membrane behind the altar wall, through a slot that separates the north wall from the ceiling and through an arc cut into the roof of the rectangular entrance canopy. The white rendered walls reflect the light from these various sources in different ways.
Büttner Neumann Braun, St Canisius Church, Berlin, 2003
A clear glass wall allows the church interior to open out onto an enclosed space outdoors. Additional direct daylight comes from a band of light and indirect light from a translucent glass membrane behind the altar. The mean daylight factor lies between 2.1 and 3.2 per cent
In Volker Giencke’s St Florian’s church in Aigen im Ennstal (1992), sliding panes of coloured antique glass are arranged in front of a wall of transparent thermal glazing so that the play of colours, which produces a stimulating and contemplative atmosphere within, can be changed to reflect the church calendar.
Translucent facades close off the world and nature outside and concentrate attention on the activities within the church space. Unlike with transparent or tinted glazing, there is no danger of glare as a result of direct sunlight. The brightness of overcast skies is comparatively low, rising gradually as cloud cover clears to reveal a sunny sky; the space remains consistently illuminated. The cuboid form of the Christus Pavilion by gmp Architects and Joachim Zais (2000), a glass and steel construction, which was dismantled after the Expo 2000 and re-erected in Volkenroda, is enclosed by 12 millimetre thick glass panels bonded with 10 millimere thick panels of crystalline marble. Light streams in through the capitals of the nine cross-shaped steel columns where they meet the roof. The diffuse and even light filtered by the white marble and the strong verticality produced by the lighting of the columns from above lend the space a contemplative and introverted character. The mean daylight factor for the entire interior of the church is 2.7 percent.
The space of the Church of the Sacred Heart by Allmann Sattler Wappner in Munich (2002) is enclosed by a wooden shrine placed within in a translucent rectangular glass volume. Vertical slats of maple wood are arranged in a timber framework and adjusted so that the brightness of the space increases towards the altar. The degree of transparency of the outer facade follows exactly the inverse pattern: behind the altar it is opaque, preventing views inside or out, and at the entrance entirely transparent.
Allmann Sattler Wappner, Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, Munich, 2000The church space is enclosed by a wooden shrine placed within a translucent rectangular glass volume. The mean daylight factor around the altar is 6.2 per cent. Towards the back of the pews, this value drops to 2.5 per cent as the structure of the wooden slats becomes more closed
For fully-glazed surfaces, consistent and even illumination, glare-free light, the degree of shadow and the direction of incident light are even more fundamental for the resulting quality of natural light than with windows. The traditional though no longer obligatory orientation of churches, with the choir to the east and the long sides of the church on the north and south sides, is advantageous in terms of lighting. When the sun is lower in the sky, the west and east facing façades are exposed to greater direct solar irradiation and therefore more warmth than south-facing façades (or north-facing for churches in the southern hemisphere). The high position of the sun on the south side (or the north side for churches in the southern hemisphere) means that this façade can be shaded quite effectively by overhanging eaves, canopies, photovoltaic modules or louvres. This is more difficult on the west and east-facing facades where the angle of the sun approaches the horizontal. Large glazed openings on these surfaces can lead to a considerable build-up of heat. In churches with an eastward orientation, therefore, the natural regulation of indoor climate complements Christian symbolism: the Second Coming of Christ has always been prophesied to come with the rising of the sun in the east.
Spaces that are particularly deep can be more evenly illuminated with light from above than from the side, the entire sky serving as a source of light rather than just a section, as is the case with windows and wall glazing. Skylights receive the brightest light from the zenith rather than the weaker light from above the horizon. When used in the same quantity, skylights are much less prone to obstructions to illumination than windows or glazed walls are. They cause less glare and are less susceptible to the kind of distracting silhouette-effects seen when looking at bright windows. Skylights are, however, not able to afford a view of the surroundings and can provide orientation through weather and time of day alone.
Florian Nagler, St Sophia, Munich, 2005
White timber slatted screens filter natural light that shines from above and through the rear wall. The mean daylight factor lies between 5.7 and 6.4 percent
Skylights provide sufficient illumination for all zones of a space within a cone with a 30-degree spread beneath the skylight. Sacred spaces can be lit solely from above, as can be seen, for example, in the Pantheon in Rome. Skylights can also be used to emphasise individual areas of a space, for example the crossing at the intersection of nave and transept. Light that shines from above onto the altar can lend the space a transcendent nature or similarly be used to symbolically mark the position of the font or tabernacle. Le Corbusier used daylight not so much to illuminate a space entirely but as a means of accentuation. In the monastery La Tourette near Lyon (1961), he uses cylindrical shafts, their inner surfaces painted, to shed coloured light onto the side altar of the crypt, accentuating its presence.
For spaces lit solely from above, a higher daylight factor is required to provide a pleasant level of brightness indoors than for spaces lit by windows (a daylight factor of at least 2 percent which can normally be achieved with a 4 percent window wall area proportion). A daylight factor of 4 percent is necessary for complete natural illumination, which can be achieved with a window wall area proportion of 8 percent. The Pantheon in Rome, a classic example, has a single opening at the top of the dome, which amounts to 4.06 percent of the surface area. To ensure a consistent and even level of illumination, the distance between skylights should be not be more than the height of the room. A space is regarded as evenly lit when the proportion of minimum daylight factor to maximum daylight factor is larger or equal to 1:2. For spaces lit by windows, this proportion must be larger or equal to 1:6.
Skylights are used in contemporary church architecture in different ways. In the double Church of St. Maria Magdalena by Kister Scheithauer Gross in Freiburg (2004), sunlight streams in between the ceiling joists through wide bands of rooflights, casting dynamic patterns of diagonal shadows across the concrete walls. The areas around the altars of both churches in the building are illuminated by indirect static light cast onto its wall surfaces: the altar and ambo in the Catholic space by a wall niche; the altar and pulpit of the Protestant space by a large wooden baffle with horizontal cut-outs that is suspended in front of a large window.
The church of St Francis in Regensburg (2004) designed by Königs Architekten is entirely open to the sky, with the light from above filtered by a translucent membrane, creating an introverted atmosphere in the elliptical interior of the church. The mood and lighting of the space change with the position of the sun and clarity of the sky.
Artificial lighting can be integrated subtly into architecture and used for visual dominance. Like natural light, artificial light can, over and above its functional purpose, also acquire symbolic meaning. In darkness, artificial lighting can be used to create a spatial impression of its own or to emulate daylight as far as is possible.
Despite the abundance of light that surrounds us in everyday life, we still respond to the symbolism of light and darkness. For Catholic church services, for example, the right approach for the time of day is of critical importance and determines the need for supplementary artificial lighting:
• Before sunrise for the Rorate Mass during advent, celebrated in candlelight.
• Before dawn for the Easter eve service, which begins in darkness and takes place as the sun begins to rise.
• On bright mornings for the Sunday High Mass, celebrated as the sun rises.
• At night for church services such as Midnight Mass, which takes place on Christmas Eve in the light of the Christmas tree, which should therefore not be outshone by artificial lighting.
The number of candles lit for a church service used to denote the status of the mass. Today, the heightening or reduction of artificial lighting is likewise a means of orchestrating the celebration of the liturgy. Bus systems with integrated lighting control units (EIB/KNX) make it possible to provide the right kind of lighting in the right quantity at the right time during a church service. A Sunday morning church service needs artificial lighting only to supplement natural light if the daylight factor is not sufficient, or to create a particularly festive atmosphere on church holidays. For evening church services after sunset, subdued lighting with low light levels is most appropriate in which the pews are bathed in a dimmed light rather than illuminating the vault and ceiling as one would during the day. Lighting scenes can be programmed for church services that take place during the day or in the evening, for silent prayer, for celebrations such as baptisms or weddings and for concerts. They could be ready for recall through touch sensors, displays or panels. Lighting scenes can be adjusted as required at any time by dimming or brightening.
Natural light and artificial light have different qualities: in terms of colour, colour rendition, intensity and dynamics, natural light is far superior to artificial light. Neither the intensity and colour of daylight, nor its variety of modulation can be achieved artificially. Nevertheless, artificial lighting is required in churches as soon as it becomes dark. Research shows that people expect a certain quality of light indoors at different times of the day. For example, a bright white light of at least 3000 Kelvin comes close to how we experience light during the day outside. When using artificial light it is important to consider such biological expectations, and these are increasingly being reflected in professional dynamic lighting concepts. To create appropriate lighting conditions in churches that are used for all manner of activities, lights can be used which can be switched and dimmed in various combinations: concentrated downlight resembles the strength of direct sunlight, while diffuse atmospheric light resembles the ambient light of the sky. By dimming the light component, the colour of the light can be altered not unlike the colour of the sun as it sets.
Karl Hans Neumann, Church of St Joseph, Münchingen, 1962
Directional light: dual-state switchable glass cylinder light fittings provide directional light for the altar and pews. The lighting provides additional reading light by day and illuminates the church service in the evenings. The matt silver reflector is visible inside the transparent housing of the light fitting
Lighting calculation for an evening service: the broad illumination cone of the 30 pendant lights illuminate the church space with downlight.above Light intensity: the isolux lines show that in the zone of the pews a luminosity of between 100 and 150 lux can be achieved. The altar, pulpit, font and lectern lie in the region of 195 to 250 luxbelow Light distribution: the lower half of the room is bright; for the evening service, the upper half is illuminated only by reflected light
Karl Hans Neumann, Church of St Joseph, Münchingen, 1962
Diffuse light: a translucent inner cylinder containing an economical compact fluorescent lamp produces diffuse ambient lighting for daytime church services
The colour of light is divided into three primary groups: daylight-white, neutral-white and warm-white. Lamps with good colour rendition properties such as incandescent and halogen lamps illuminate colours in church interiors naturally. More economical high pressure and low pressure discharge lamps have different chromatic properties and discontinuous spectral distributions. Colours of the spectrum that are not present in this light are not rendered naturally; the higher the colour rendering index, R (for example, greater than nine), the better the colour rendition and the better its suitability for sacred spaces.
Visible light fittings are a distinct design element and should correspond to the nature of the sacred space. The form, suspension and arrangement of lights can lend spaces a rhythmic or concentrated character. Like other fittings in churches, they should ideally be designed for the space in question. Sacred spaces can be illuminated by a large number of small lamps, as can be seen in Henning Larsen’s Enghøj Church (1994) in which hundreds of transparent bulbs are suspended in clusters creating a starry sky, or in Fogh & Følner’s Tornbjerg Church (1994) in which transparent globe lamps, delicate like soap bubbles, are suspended in a tight grid; or they can be lit by a few large lamps that characterise the space such as can be seen in the Grace Church in Stuttgart by Maier Graf Speidel (1964). The white wings of the light fittings pick up the folds in the concrete of the walls and ceiling, and through the play of light and shadow, they lend the austerity of the space lightness and buoyancy.
Maier Graf Speidel, Grace Church, Stuttgart, 1964
Soft light: the winged light fittings echo the folds in the concrete ceiling and walls. The matt glass and white perforated metal sheets reflect the light from the lamp producing a soft light within the church interior
A space appears light and pleasant when the luminance of its vertical surfaces is high. During the day, with the help of natural illumination, a value of 300, preferably 500 lux is desirable. In the evening, a mean intensity of illumination of 80 to 150 lux is necessary in the nave and the pews in particular so that the congregation can comfortably read their hymnbooks. Light attracts attention – the human eye is involuntarily drawn towards the lightest part of a room. The focus of activities should therefore be more brightly lit, with a light intensity of 150 to 250 lux. In the side aisles and secondary areas, the level of brightness should recede as bright areas in the periphery of view are distracting. The overall brightness should be sufficient so that accent light is not required. Very bright lamps or strongly contrasting light intensities of different items in view lead to glare. Very bright window surfaces in the choir can be just as glaring as visible points of light from spotlights beneath the ceiling or glass lamps mounted against a dark wall.
Light directs one’s view and attention. The direction of artificial light can either follow that of daylight, supporting how it lights up a space through windows or skylights, or alternatively consciously illuminate other areas to create a different spatial impression. People need shadows in order to recognise the structure of spaces. Strong, directed light from a single source produces sharp shadows with a strong contrast. Consequently, it becomes more difficult to differentiate between object and shadow. Indirect lighting generally speaking produces very little shadow. It can be used to neutralise boundaries, to create spaces of lightness, but it can also impair our perception of space, making it appear monotonous and lifeless.
As the primary focus of church activities, the altar should be the lightest part of the space. The altar and ambo should be brightly lit, but not exaggeratedly so as if in the beam of a stage spotlight. The clergy and celebrants in the altar space must not be dazzled by bright lights at low-level that point at them. If floodlights are necessary to illuminate the altar, they should be mounted at an angle of 45 degrees above the angle of view of the clergy and should not shine directly on their heads. It is often advisable to illuminate the face of the priest at the altar and the sermon reader at the ambo or pulpit from two sides. By lighting the nave and altar in the same light, the communal celebration of the clergy and congregation can be given additional visual expression.
At dusk or at night, churches can appear inviting when the light within is visible from outside, beckoning one to enter to take part in prayers. A minimum level of brightness is necessary in order for people to get a sense of orientation in the space. The provision of sufficient light by which to see communicates a sense of security. Directed light can structure the visible environment and direct attention to the altar or to particular iconography within the church. Lit candles and the ever-changing play of light and shadow they create can be used to provide a visible point of brilliant light in an otherwise subdued space that is both attractive to look at and contemplative for prayer.
Light to look at: burning prayer candles
Light in Synagogues
Light was God’s first act of creation. God is the source of light and of life and is himself often called The Light. The significance of light in synagogues is similar to its role in Christian sacred spaces. The eternal light, a light that never dies out, represents the presence of God in the tabernacle as well as in the synagogue. The seven branches of the Jewish candelabrum, the menorah, is the oldest and most important religious symbol of Judaism. As a sign of religious enlightenment, the menorah is present in one form or another in every synagogue, as is the Kaddish lamp that commemorates the dead.
Synagogues are illuminated with skylights as well as windows and glazed walls. In “Synagoge ’88,” a treatise on the design of synagogues, Salomon Korn recommends illuminating synagogues exclusively with light from above. By refraining from using windows and openings in the walls, a place of concentration, prayer and contemplation can be created that is free of outside distractions. According to Korn, the bimah should be lit from above from a centrally arranged shaft of light making it the centre of attention. The outer walls should ideally by washed in light from above, and the torah shrine itself should appear as the source of light. The interior of the synagogue in Dresden by Wandel Hoefer Lorch Hirsch (2005) follows Korn’s recommendations and is lit by a rooflight. The central sanctuary is enclosed in a diaphanous metal curtain that hangs down from the ceiling and glitters in the light from above, a reference to Moses’ tabernacle. The monolithic external walls that surround the sanctuary and curtain refer to the Temple of Jerusalem. In Alfred Jacoby’s synagogue in Kassel (2000), filtered light shines from above through a band of skylights in the ceiling. The torah shrine is placed in front of a glass window that shines with a diffuse blue light.
Artificial lighting in synagogues should be used in a similar fashion to natural light, in order to emphasise particular places in the sacred space. During the Jewish service, attention is focused on the torah shrine, the torah procession and the bimah. Readings are recited from the bimah and regardless of day or night this should be the brightest area of the synagogue. As the entire congregation actively takes part in the service, the seating must also be lit sufficiently. Zvi Hecker, for example, employs simple pendant lights that match the sparseness of the concrete enclosure to illuminate the synagogue in Duisburg. By contrast, conspicuous lighting concepts are characteristic of Alfred Jacoby’s synagogue designs: in Aachen (2000) and Chemnitz (2002), he uses chandeliers in the form of the Star of David. In his design for the synagogue in Kassel, the torah shrine itself is made a source of light by backlighting its glazed doors.
In the Koran, Sura 24 (Al-Nur – “Light”) states that “God is the light of the heavens and the earth.” Nevertheless light is not used to denote symbolic meaning in mosques since, with the exception of the Kaaba in Mecca, the use of symbolism is prohibited in Islam. Light should not be used to create mystical atmospheres but to clearly delineate the basic form of the prayer hall and its extents. Before God all men are equal. As a result, despite their orientation towards Mecca, mosques exhibit no particular directionality even though the opposite arrangement of entrance and mihrab creates an axis of sorts. The interiors of mosques should be evenly illuminated. The empty space of the floor, the ability to perceive the room as a whole and the even illumination produce a space of great unity and peace.
The handling of daylight in a mosque is very dependent on the climatic conditions of its location. In very hot climatic zones, daylight is only admitted through very small openings or filtered, for example by transenna as can be seen in the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. In temperate climatic zones, more natural light is admitted into the interior of mosques through clear (rarely coloured) glass windows.
Geometric window pattern in the Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, 705-715
For the Ottoman type of central-dome mosque, which commonly serves as a model for new mosques built in a traditional style or reinterpretations thereof, the following apply:
• The entire room and the enclosing walls of the room should be brightly and evenly lit.
• Direct sunlight and strong shadows should be avoided.
• Central areas such as the mihrab or minbar should not be emphasised through the use of light.
• The room can be illuminated via clear glass windows above floor level, likewise the rim of the dome but not the vertex of the dome itself.
These principles have been realised in quite different ways. The Mosque of Rome by Portoghesi, Gigliotti and Moussawi is lit by numerous small windows in the tiers of the dome, by a large window in the qibla wall and indirect light from a strip window that runs around the room at half wall-height.
The revised design for the Central Mosque in Cologne by Paul Böhm from 2006 features several shell-like layers of walls that form a dome in the centre. Glazing arranged between the layers allows light to flood into the prayer hall.
Paul Böhm, Cologne Mosque project, 2006, isometric view and southeast elevation
The five daily prayers should, wherever possible, be conducted communally in the mosque. Two of the prayers take place during the day at midday and in the afternoon, the remaining prayers at dawn, after sunset and late in the evening. Additional prayers in the fasting month of Ramadan are conducted at night. For such ritual prayers, the use of artificial light in addition to natural light is absolutely essential. The orientation of the believers is fixed with all prayers conducted facing the qibla wall and the mihrab niche. The need to hear the prayer and recital takes priority over the ability to see the person leading prayers. As such, neither places nor people are especially illuminated; instead, the entire room is evenly lit. Large slender circular hoop chandeliers are commonly used to light historical Ottoman mosques, such as can be seen in the Sultan Suleiman Mosque in Istanbul. Occasionally, large chandeliers are used, although these contradict the principle of even illumination as they create a point of focus in a space that strictly speaking has no functional centre.
Koca Mimar Sinan, Sultan Suleiman Mosque, Istanbul, 1548-1559, longitudinal section
The tradition of illuminating spaces evenly using slender circular hoop chandeliers has been taken up and adapted in many modern mosques. In the Islamic Cultural Center in New York by Skidmore Owings Merrill (see pp. 216-17), a series of lamps suspended from the rim of the dome form a large circular ring reminiscent of its historical predecessor. In the Dar Al Islam Mosque by Hassan Fathy in Abiquiu, a ring of traditional glass lanterns is suspended beneath the dome. In the Mosque of Rome by Portoghesi, Gigliotti and Moussawi, a tiered series of hoops with small, suspended glass lamps emphasises the centre of the space, with further single hoops suspended from the 16 individual cupola around its perimeter.
Selected Bibliography
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Originally published in: Rudolf Stegers, Sacred Buildings: A Design Manual, Birkhäuser, 2008.