LIGHTING IN MUSEUM

Elements and Design considerations

Author : Shweta Dayal

Reg. No. : 12115BSCID012
Author Affiliation : Vogue Institute of
Fashion Technology

KIADB APPAREL PARK , PHASE II, DODDABALLAPUR ROAD , BANGALORE -561203

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First and foremost, I have to thank my research supervisor Mrs Jayalakshmi and
Mrs Harshalata. Without her assistance and dedicated involvement in every step
throughout the process, this paper would have never been accomplished. Her
teaching style and enthusiasm for the topic made a strong impression on me and I
have always carried positive memories of her classes with me. I would like to
thank you very much for your support and understanding over these past three
years.

Getting through my elective report required more than academic support, and I
have many, many people to thank for listening to and, at times, having to tolerate
me over the past three years. I cannot begin to express my gratitude and
appreciation for their friendship. I have been unwavering in their personal and
professional support during the time I spent at Vogue Institute of Fashion
Technology. That implies my gratitude to Vogue Institute of Fashion Technology
for nurturing creative minds.

Most importantly, none of this could have happened without my family. Thank you
Dad, for supporting me till the time you had to pass. I suppose this thesis would
have made you nothing but happy. Thank you mother for offering encouragement
through phone calls. To my sister with her own brand of humour, has been a major
critic of every topic I discuss on calls. This thesis stands as a testament to your
unconditional love and encouragement from you all.

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 ABSTRACT
Aim

To design a museum with efficient and beautiful lighting.

Objective

Lighting is essential for human interaction in a space. Technical illumination

research lays a foundation to conduct analysis in a variety of museums. This
research component is significant to understand the complexity and various facets
of overall museum lighting design. This study evaluates both the quantitative and
qualitative aspects of lighting design in four museums

Scope

This research is therefore the study of museum design that will guide the visitors
to discover, explore and learn about history in a creative environment.

Limitations

This report is confined to research articles available for free online and it may
reflect the bias of the authors of the publication.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
HISTORY
History of Lighting
History of Daylight
History of Artificial Lighting

MUSEUM LIGHTING ANALYSIS

Museum lighting techniques
Visual adaption and accommodation

LIGHTING DESIGN
Lighting Design considerations
FUTURISTIC ENERGY EFFICIENT DESIGN
Green Museum
Energy efficient light fixtures
THE LIGHTING DECISION
CONCLUSION
REFERENCES
APPENDIX
Definitions

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 INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this thesis is to study qualitative and quantitative aspects of
museum lighting design in existing installations. The museum design will guide
the visitors to discover, explore and learn about history in a creative environment.
Lighting plays a significant role in developing interaction between humans and
museum artifacts in one defined space (Galloway, 2009)." The goal of a museum
is to create an interactive experience for the guests, as well as preserve the
condition of artifacts.

Lighting is a critical component in a museum environment because the space

enables visitors to see objects, experience new sights and react to the surrounding
environment. Typically, environments have two types of lightnatural and
artificial. For a museum, the role of light is an essential part of creating an
atmosphere prime for discovery, while also preserving artifacts. This can be a very
difficult balancing act between meeting preservation needs and forming interactive
experiences that achieve the goal of the museuma place to discover, explore and
learn.

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 HISTORY
History of Lighting

To the best of our archaeological knowledge, the first attempt at man-made

lighting occurred about 70,000 years ago. The first lamp was invented made of a
shell, hollowed-out rock, or other similar non-flammable object which was filled
with a combustible material (probably dried grass or wood), sprinkled with animal
fat (the original lighter fluid) and ignited.

As time passed, materials such as pottery and alabaster were used. Wicks were
added to the lamp to control the rate of burning. Around the 7th century BC, the
Greeks started making terra cotta lamps to replace handheld torches. In fact, the
word lamp is derived from the Greek word lampas meaning torch.

Lamp developments continued but still used the same basic technology - control
the burning of a fuel (natural oils, waxes, and the like) with wicks, tubes,
chimneys, vents, and other similar devices, and put it in an attractive and/or
practical housing.

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History of Daylight

Museum designs incorporate daylight because humans relate to nature.

"Natural Light can be used to great effect to dramatize and enliven the design of 7
any building (De Chiara, 690, 2007). Light defines a space within a buildings
design. Daylight always fluctuates and often is fused in interactive spaces. Cloud
cover, season, the time of day and a buildings position are factors directly
impacting lighting design and how humans experience the space. The amount of
daylight penetrating the museum interior must be given serious consideration to
understand how natural light impacts the space. Factors such as reflection, glare,
acclimation and delineation in the space should be analysed closely. IESNA has
researched and made factors that affect the final luminance produced by

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architectural surfaces and daylight (RP-30-96, 30, 1996). Scale and proportion are
important considerations. The ceiling height and room depth directly correlate
to the amount of daylight absorbed and explore the intent of light in the space (RP-
30-96, 30, 1996). Various heights and room depths also can affect human
perception of space. The amount of daylight and how natural light is filtered into a
space will create several different effects in a specific space.

For example, if a room is small with high ceilings and a punch of daylight, it will
be perceived as being larger. If a room is large with low ceilings and little
daylight, the space can feel confined and stagnant. The placement of windows or
glazing and the available amount of natural light gives the design variety.
Reflecting characteristics of the interior surfaces is another factor with IESNA
standards.

Interior materials and finishes should be selected to contribute to the overall

aesthetic of the space. When daylight is introduced in a space, interior finishes can
create more reflective surfaces and cause a negative effect. Materials and finishes
that are too shiny or reflective create glare. If there is glare or too much reflective
light, guests may experience discomfort while interacting in the museum, and their
experience will be greatly altered. Lighting design needs to encompass the
dynamics of daylight and use light properly to assist in creating an interactive and
comfortable museum experience.

While daylight adds to the overall ambiance of the space, this light has negative
impact on artefacts. Thus, daylight and preservation of artefacts usually conflict

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and must sometimes compromise for a museum designs sake. Natural light has a
high light output and contains very high concentrations of Ultraviolet rays.

These UV rays are known to damage textiles and artefacts. In addition, light
exposure will affect artefacts. IESNA standards range from five to 30 foot-candles
depending on the type of artefact.

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History of Artificial Lighting

In 1878, Thomas Alva Edison set out to develop a practical electric light. For over
a year, Edison and the staff at his Menlo Park Laboratory experimented with
countless materials in the search for a practical filament. They also developed all
the parts needed for a lighting system, including a new generator, underground
conductors, and current meters. By the fall of 1879 the pieces began to fall into
place, and on New Year Eve Edison invited the world to Menlo Park to see the
new invention. This exhibition, opened to commemorate the centennial of Edisons
light bulb, considers experiments with electricity before Edisons, the "Invention
Factory" at Menlo Park, how Edison created a market for his product, and the
impact of electricity in factories, on city streets, and in the home.

This exhibition featured:

a bulb from a public demonstration of Edison's light in Menlo Park during

Christmas week, 1879
early electrical appliances for the home; some which caught on, such as
electric fans, and some which did not, namely the electric marshmallow toaster.

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 MUSEUM LIGHTING ANALYSIS

Museum Lighting Techniques and Tips

Museum lighting systems have a range of features that include, but are not limited
to, helping to guide the museum visitor through a space, setting a mood for an
exhibit, focusing on particular artifacts, such as photos or sculptures, and ensuring
the conservation of any items being displayed by protecting them from ultra-violet
(UV) light damage.

General Lighting and Accent Lighting Tips

Another museum lighting technique to provide both overall general illumination as

well as important accent lighting is museum track lighting. Simply put, track
fixtures are quite versatile. Lights can be moved along the track, the track can be
different lengths, and a number of different lamp sizes and light sources can be
combined. Track light fixtures can wash a wall in light or spotlight a particular
item. Being able to combine all of these different lighting techniques makes track
lighting very popular lighting for museums.

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Preventing UV Damage

Daylight, or natural sunlight, as well as fluorescent lighting can damage works of

art because both of these light sources emit UV rays. They can especially damage
items that are made of organic material, such as paper, textiles, and photography.

However, that does not mean that neither is used as lighting in museums. It simply
means that when these light sources are used in the overall lighting design that the
UV energy is properly managed.

In fact, fluorescent light fixtures are quite popular for general lighting and diffused
indirect lighting because they are energy-efficient and have longer rated lives than
other comparable light sources.

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Visual Adaptation and Accommodation

The human eye is highly adaptive. The eye has the ability to perceive things and
operate under very bright lighting conditions, as well as adapt to moonlight and
mid-day sunlight.

This unique ability is called adaption. Visual adaption is the amount of time it
takes a human eye to acclimatize to new surroundings. The eye also has the ability
to change shape to focus on objects and make meaning out of the information
received. This process is called accommodation.

Changes from high to low luminance can affect guests in the museum depending
on age and visual difficulties. In order for a human to see an object and its details,
a lighting designer needs to analyze how the guests will interact with the exhibits
to properly take visual adaptation into consideration. "There are limits to the range
of luminance that the eye can adapt to at any one time, and areas where brightness
is too high will become glare, might it difficult to see the exhibit" (Wilson, 32).
This process is not instantaneous.

"Adaptation is eight minutes adequate for the eye to adapt and one hours in
extreme conditions between high to low light levels" (RP-30-96, 12 & 59, 1996).
IESNA also suggests another criterion of observation that says the 12"display of
the objects should be the brightest elements in view" (RP-30-96 59, 1996).

The smaller or more detailed an object is, the more light is required. Therefore, the
human eye has the ability to be very receptive to light, but the amount of

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luminance and difference from one level to another is a significant factor in
lighting of a museum.

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 LIGHTING DESIGN

Lighting Design Considerations

The lighting design has several considerations that affect the lighting and
spatial concepts. Color rendered index, color temperature, texture, form,
viewing angles, layered light, and maintenance are all factors that contribute
to the whole (see Figure 1, 2 and 3 below) . The specified lamps have high
color render index and 3,500 Kelvin. The lighting maintenance is convenient
because a limited number of lamp types are selected for the museum and
location of luminaries are away from the exhibits.

Figure 1: Lighting angles and levels

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Each of exhibit area uses layers of light to attract the guests to read and learn
from each historical time period. These considerations allow the lighting
design to fuse lighting elements with an architectural designed space to create
an effective and functional design for humans to enjoy the experiential
interaction.

Figure 2: Lighting angles and levels (continuation)

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Figure 3: Lighting angles and levels (continuation)

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 MUSEUM LIGHTING FIXTURES

Museums have unique and special requirements that are different from other kinds
of industrial style lighting. Any form of museum lighting design must take into
account all of the potential ways for illuminating spaces, including general
lighting, accent and spotlights, task lighting, and even decorative or sparkle
lighting. Our selection of museum lighting fixtures include track lighting for both
general illumination and for highlighting certain exhibits, UV filters to minimize
damage to a collection or historical objects, and display and picture lights.
Moreover, we offer light fixtures that are used either in the interior or exterior of
any traditional commercial building, including a museum, such as LED exit signs,
outside lighting, emergency lighting, replacement light bulbs, dimmers, and much
more.

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TRACK LIGHTING RECESSED DISPLAY LIGHTS INDIRECT LIGHTING
LIGHTING

BACKLIGHTING OCCUPANCY AND DISPLAY CASE LIGHTING PICTURE LIGHTS

VACANCY SENSORS

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 UV FILTERS LIGHT FILTERS LIGHT LOUVERS LENSES

LED STEP LIGHTS LED OUTDOOR LED EXIT SIGNS EMERGENCY LIGHT
WALL WASHER FIXTURES
LIGHTS

ACCENT LIGHTING CEILING LIGHTING DESK LAMPS SECURITY LIGHTING

LIGHT BULBS DIMMERS ACCESSORIES

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 FUTURISTIC ENERGY EFFICIENT DESIGN

Green museum in New York

The right lighting is essential for any museum. Each exhibit needs a lighting
scheme that will preserve the artistic, historical, or scientific integrity of the
articles on display and has to look ambient.

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Energy efficient light fixtures

Guide lights:

The most energy-efficient step lights and guide lights can found in the market are
probably LEDs. Theyll last much longer than older incandescent lights and most
fluorescent lights, and theyll produce the same brightness while only using a
fraction of the energy.

Exit signs:

Exit signs are necessary features in any museum, but its not necessary to use a lot
of energy to operate them. An alternative would be photo luminescent exit signs
which are made with a special material that absorbs ambient light and emits it
when the lights go dark.

Light bulbs:

A good LED light bulb might use as little as 13% of the energy it takes to power an
incandescent light bulb of equivalent brightness. Energy-efficient halogen
lamps are the perfect choice when needed. They provide the same quality light
while using 33% less energy than a regular halogen lamp.

Ceiling lights:

If using recessed can lights for overhead lighting in your museum, think about
using them with LED retrofit modules. Its one of the easiest ways to save energy

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on a grander scale, and the light provided by these fixtures matches the quality of
incandescent or halogen lights

Accent lights:

In rooms with bold architecture coves, niches, columns, signs, or even sculptures
you probably already use some kind of light as an accent. Not only
will replacing these with LEDs save you more energy and require less
maintenance, theyll also give you more creative freedom when planning exhibits
and events.

For example, if you light your coves with colour changing LED tape lights, you
can keep them bright white during the normal hours or change the hue for an
evening benefit, holiday, or special showcase. LEDs are one of the most low-
profile light sources, so the fixtures will never distract from the museums overall
aesthetic.

Display lights:

Of course, the most important lights in a museum are the display lights. They serve
your museums most essential purpose. They dictate how visitors see the things
you display. So why change your display lights if you already love how they look?

Well, LED display lights help you save energy AND theyll be safer for the things
on display. Yes, by now you know LEDs use much less energy to achieve the same
results as older light sources, but you might not know that LEDs wont expose

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your artwork, artefacts, or sensitive object to any harmful UV light. UV light can
easily degrade delicate objects. LEDs also run cooler than other light sources,
especially halogen, which can be another benefit when lighting sensitive material.

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 THE LIGHTING DECISION

According to R. Ajmat, J. Sandoval, F. Arana Sema, B. ODonell2, S. Gor & H.

Alonso worldwide museums have in common the intention of telling a story, this
intention is beyond value and size of the displayed pieces, its geographical location
or the quantity of people that visit them. In this perspective, light fulfills a
highly regarded double role: to reveal the object itself (physiological function) and
to generate ambience (significance function) where the statement is produced
and, therefore, it takes part of the statement in an implicit form. However,
lighting together with other environmental conditions (like temperature and
humidity), can modify objects properties significantly throughout their exhibition
time, leading to deterioration. Therefore there is always a dilemma to solve:
Exhibition versus Preservation.

High standards of preservation may lead to poor conditions of exhibition. On the

other hand, a stimulating ambience for exhibition may expose valuable objects to
lower preservation standards. This paper explores the relationship between the
exhibition of artwork or historical pieces in museums and the role of lighting and
other environmental conditions as generator of an ambience where a story is told.
It presents surveys carried out in museums in Argentina and Spain under diverse
indoor conditions. An evaluation is presented of the influence of daylighting and
lighting design in museums and its relationship with other environmental
conditions in the quality of exhibitions. Conclusions include recommendations for
museum administrators about lighting in the exhibition of vulnerable pieces in
museums.

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Introduction to Lighting decision

Light in museums is designed to fulfil visual requirements of visitors as part

of their comfort and enjoyment of the museum experience. However, visitors
comfort is completely accomplished when all environmental conditions are taken
into account. Environmental conditions in museums are a key element in creating
the appropriate exhibition space for both: visitors and museums collection
(artwork or historic artefacts) as given below in the following tables.

We judge light, humidity and air temperature and pollution amongst the main
museums environmental conditions to be controlled. Light is arguably one of the
greatest causes of deterioration in museum collections, on one hand it can be
destructive and thus conflicts with the museums role in preserving our heritage;
on the other it is essential to vision, the principal means of communicating the
information held within and around the objects in the museums collection.

Light is a key interpretive tool to extend the potential in communication, it

provides a context in time and space for the museum visitor, in an architectural
sense as well as the relationship with the collection. Several factors contribute to
light damaging effects: the materials from which objects are made, the type and
intensity of light they are exposed to and the duration of the exposure. Especially
sensitive to light are objects made of organic material documents and letters,
photographs, works of art on paper, textiles, clothing and accessories (Table 1).
The result can be irreparable damage to museum artefacts, damage that is
cumulative over the life of the objects and frequently irreversible.

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Table 1: Materials classification based on sensitivity.

The light to which museum collections are exposed is made up of three parts:
ultraviolet (UV) radiation at one end of the spectrum, visible light in the middle
and infrared radiation at the other end. A common misconception is that
eliminating UV light solves the problem of deterioration (Table 2). But all light,
wherever it falls on the spectrum, is energy. And it is energy that drives the
chemical reactions that result in damage to objects from fading. High-energy UV
light falls outside the range of human vision and so is not necessary for viewing a
museum exhibit. At the other end of the spectrum is infrared light, which produces

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heat damage from infrared light. Museums environmental control involve air
conditioning (cooling or heating), presence of people and lighting, all these factors
disturb the natural micro climate of the area and may have a negative impact on
conservation of the exhibited artefacts .Some studies carried out have been based
on medium and long term monitoring in order to determine by simple indicators,
the quality of the micro climate in relation to the requirements to eliminate risks of
preservation.

Table 2: Deterioration factors in art work pieces.

The thermal quality was assessed with a performance index which expresses
the percentage of time the storage required parameters are not met. This research
project is aiming to explore the relationship between the exhibition of the pieces in
museums and the role of lighting and other environmental conditions as generator
of an ambience for museum visitors.

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Table 3: Illuminance values per point in a display case (above image) at the
archaeology museum.

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Table 4: Materials to produce noticeable fading.

Table 5: Classification and exhibitions conditions.

Illuminance values were measured on different artwork or historic artefacts.

In Northern Argentina findings were completely diverse. Even when some of the

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museums were conceived originally to house a museum, exhibition conditions
of illuminance were significantly different. While the Archaeology Museum has a
complex infrastructure to include 24-hour environmental controlled conditions the
MAS (Sacred Art Museum) has little control over them. Furthermore, MACBA
(Contemporary Art Museum in Barcelona) fulfils most of CIE recommendations,
however, for this particular case an evaluation of visual adaptation to illumination
levels for visitors was carried out as the potential problem in visual adaptation to
illumination levels (Table 6).

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Table 6: Illuminance values for two display cases in the above image

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 LITERATURE REVIEW

The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum

The Bob Bullock Texas History Museum is a museum that explains the story of
Texas. Verner Johnson and Associates designed an interactive experiential
museum that tells of the story of Texas narrative form. The museum immediately
sets a dramatic, intimate tone. With three floors, the light levels are very low
throughout the museum. Dcor explains each exhibit while the lighting
emphasizes facets 23 within the exhibit. The color palette is simple, natural tones
of maroons, greens, dark blues and browns. The paint was eggshell with suede or
linen backgrounds in the displays to the artifacts to be emphasized. The Bob
Bullock Texas State History Museum targets all ages to have a unique experience
through Texas history.

The first floor depicts the land before Texas as a state. Several lighting techniques
provide dimension to these exhibits. Layering of light with luminaire types is the
overall striking effect is a fusion of track spots, down light cans and fiber optics for
viewers to be drawn into the exhibit. The varying light levels create movement
throughout the first floor. One area is thirty to forty foot candles, while the next
exhibit is ten to fifteen foot candles. The cabin and teepee area had completely
different color and light levels to illustrate the cozy, comforting feeling as the view
was at a typical, early-Texas home. Therefore, the lighting provides a path for
docents to experience each area and psychologically make a connection throughout
the first floor.

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Bob bullock Texas state history museum

"Building the Lone Star identity" is the theme for the second floor. This floor is
more interactive and experiential by walking through exhibits. The "Building the
Lone Star Identity" was a walk-through exhibit with soft dimmed light to feel
confined and in a controlled prison environment. The lighting design creates a
scary and mysterious unknown feeling. "Nation becomes a State" is an exhibit that
represents a steamboat. The layering of light is contrasting with highlights and
spots on elements of the steamboat. Wandering through the exhibits, the dcor and
lighting depicts each scene, which directly impacts visitors and indirectly forces
the viewers to experience the history.

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 CONCLUSION

Valuable data has been collected from different museums to date. Lighting
parameters (illuminance and luminance values) and lighting sources choice should
be carefully designed and strictly controlled while in use to protect sensitive
exhibition goods and to provide comfortable exhibition conditions for visitors.
LED technology seems to accomplish most of the requirements for this task.
Adequate temperature and humidity rates cooperate in both preservation and
comfort within museums, however still when recommendations have been met in
some of the museum spaces, attention should be paid also to exhibition time.
Highly sensitive material should be very carefully displayed to avoid short term
deterioration. A reasonable balance between appropriate environmental conditions
and exhibition times may lead to a better preservation and quality of the visual
environment. The generation of an appropriate ambience for both objects and
visitors in order to provide with the museum experience needs the expertise of
various professionals and therefore it remains as an interdisciplinary challenge.

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 APPENDIX

Definitions

CRI - Colour Rendering Index is degree of colour shift objects undergo when
illuminated by the light source as compared with a colour of those same objects
undergo when illuminated by a reference source of comparable colour temperature.

CCT - Correlated Colour Temperature is light source will determine whether the
display takes on a "cool" or "warm" appearance, expressed in Kelvin. Higher
Kelvin is a more cool appearance; lower Kelvin temperature corresponds to a
warmer appearance of the light source.

Luminance - is the luminous intensity of a surface or object. The light can be

objectively measured when reflected from or transmitted through an object. The
unit of measure is expressed in footcandles? I dont know what you meant by
produces footcandles.

Glare - harsh, uncomfortably bright light source or reflection that interferes with
visual perception. Light from the wrong place at greater brightness than that to
which eyes are adapted.

Lux - Metric unit of quantity of light on 1 m squared of surface area 1 m away

from light source of 1 cd( 1lx equal to 0.009fc).

Foot Candle (fc) - quantity of light on 1 foot squared of surface area 1 foot away
from light source of 1 cd.

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Candelas (cd) - unit of luminous intensity equal to 1 candlepower.

LED- Light-Emitting Diodes low-power, small point sources. Typically amber,

orange, or red, they are used in traffic signals, commercial advertising signage and
exit signs.

Fluorescent lamp- discharge lam which emits electron arc stream from cathodes
at ends. Fluorescent phosphor coating on inside of bulb transforms ultra-violet
energy into visible light.

Incandescent lamp- lamp in which light is produced by heating filament to

incandescence (i. e., point of emitting light) by means of an electric current .

HID- High Intensity Discharge lamp- discharge lamp which passes a high
pressure electron arc stream through a gas vapor. Examples are mercury, metal
halide, and high-pressure sodium lamps.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

References
Kevan Shaw Lighting Design, Lecture, Forum for exhibitors in
Norrkoping,Sweden, Online:www.kevan-
shaw.com/ksld_upload/pdf/museum_lecture .pdf
Camuffo, D, Pagan, E.; Bernardi, A; Becherini, F. The impact of
heating,lighting and people in re-using historical buildings: a case study,
Journal of Cultural Heritage, 5, pp. 409416, 2004.
Williams, Ben (1999). "A History of Light and Lighting". Retrieved 23
November 2012.
Raul Fernando Ajmat Lighting Design in Museum.
Daylighting adapted from Fuller Moore, Concepts and Practice of
Architectural Daylighting.
Bob Bullock Texas State Museum History Museum. (Site Visit March 4,
2009).
Bob Bullock Texas State Museum History Museum. Retrieved March 1,
2009. www.storyof texas.com
De Chiara, J. & Crosbie, M.J. (Eds) (2007).
Time-Savor Standards for Building by Garry Steffy.

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