Thoughtful Moments
Even the building’s electric lighting is intended to mirror the feel of daylight. Linear fluorescent, 28W T5, 3500K slot fixtures mimic the path of the skylights, providing seamless illumination from the same direction in the evening hours. A semi-custom, 21W T5, 3500K fluorescent, cantilevered stacklighting system provides dedicated illumination for book finding so that supplemental ambient lighting is unnecessary. A daylight harvesting and lighting control system dims the electric lights when the building has adequate daylight.
Creating a poetic, luminous atmosphere with areas of highlight and drama was a priority for both the client and the architect, Brogden says, and the Freelon Group committed to a lighting budget that allowed for more than just traditional 2x2s. In the front of the library, a cluster of linear pendants creates a sparkle and an offset to the soft light in the rest of the space. The 36W, 3500K compact fluorescent fixtures are kept on during the day to counterbalance the shadow from the roof’s south overhang and to make it clear that the library is open. At night, 70W T6, 3000K metal halide uplighting on the south overhang highlights its bold, architectural color.
The four pavilions that jut out from the glass structure, used for children’s, young adult, and other programming, are lit with playful, multiple-diameter circular fluorescent fixtures (powered by 28W T5 lamps or 36W CFLs at 3500K) that extend the feel of daylight. Finally, a luminous tower near the entrance is a free-standing, pure form, detailed with frosted backlit glass and LED lights operating at 3500K and 4W per foot, that provides an unexpected visual welcome, setting the building apart from a typical library.
The common element all of these lighting “moments” share is that they are highly visible from the outside. “These aren’t hidden moments, they’re public moments,” Rantilla says. “It’s really about inviting the community in.”
Today’s libraries face more competition as gathering spaces from national chain bookstores and other retailers, which is one reason why creating warm, inviting, and comfortable spaces is critical to a library’s success. “Coffee shop retailers, for example, have done a great job of creating an atmosphere where it’s okay to sit and spend time and work on your computer or read a book,” Brogden says. Lighting can help draw in patrons by making a library seem less stuffy and imposing and more dynamic and fun, she says. “That culture of having a welcoming environment that has a bit of decorative sparkle to it, people have come to feel comfortable with [that] in the coffee shop world, and I think libraries are moving to embrace that.”
Details
Project: Anacostia Neighborhood Public Library, Washington, D.C.
Client: District of Columbia Public Library, Washington, D.C.
Architect: The Freelon Group, Research Triangle Park, N.C.
Lighting Designer: Horton Lees Brogden Lighting Design, New York and Culver City, Calif.
Associate Architect: R. McGhee & Associates, Washington, D.C.
Civil Engineers: Delon Hampton & Associates, Washington, D.C.
Landscape Architect: Lappas & Havener, Durham, N.C.
Structural Engineer: Stewart Engineering, Raleigh, N.C.
M/E/P Engineer: John J. Christie & Associates, Washington, D.C.
Geotechnical Engineer: Professional Consulting Corp., Gaithersburg, Md.
Project Cost: $9.5 million
Lighting Cost: $400,000 (including dimming installation)
Project Size: 23,000 square feet
Watts Per Square Foot: 1.3
Code Compliance: ASHRAE 90.1-2004
Manufacturers/Applications: Alko (undercabinet fluorescent); Bega (decorative compact fluorescent pendant at corridor and children’s reading area); Hydrel (in-ground metal halide uplight at flagpole and under canopy and LED uplight at tree); LED Power (LED backlighting at glass tower); Lutron (daylight harvesting and lighting control); Pace Illumination (pole at parking lot); Philips Lightolier (linear fluorescent at bookstacks; recessed linear fluorescent at conference room, power wall, and exterior overhang; recessed metal halide downlight at multipurpose area and corridor); Prudential Lighting (lensed fluorescent strip at staircase; ceiling-recessed round fluorescent at multipurpose area; ceiling-recessed linear fluorescent at reading room); Selux (recessed linear fluorescent at conference room, restroom, and corridor); Sistemalux (recessed compact fluorescent steplight and bollard at site); Spring City (pole at sidewalk, city standard)
