Prize(s) Winners in Heritage Lighting Design
Lighting Design/Product Company Energy Green
Lead Designers Sarunas Noskaitis
Client Devbridge foundation
Photo Credits VideoMagija
Other Credits Povilas Klimas, Asta Prikockiene, Renata Bagdoniene
Completion Date June 2024
Project Location Kaunas, Lithuania
Entry DescriptionSoboras Church, an iconic landmark in Kaunas, Lithuania, is undergoing a lighting upgrade in conjunction with its renovation. The new lighting design focuses on enhancing the church's architectural beauty while ensuring that luminaires remain hidden, showcasing only the light itself.
The design employs a multi-layered approach to illuminate the façade. The first layer provides general uniform lighting, gently washing the entire building with light to outline its shape and form. This base layer ensures the church is visible from all angles, without drawing attention to the light sources.
The second layer focuses on highlighting the church's key architectural details, such as columns, arches, and ornate carvings, by using targeted lighting. This creates a subtle contrast, bringing out the intricate features without any visible luminaires.
The ground floor lighting is intentionally kept at a lower luminance to minimize glare for pedestrians using the surrounding square, enhancing their experience. In contrast, the upper levels are illuminated with greater intensity, making the church more visible from afar and reinforcing its prominence in the city.
Integrated with Kaunas' smart lighting system, the new setup allows for dynamic lighting scenarios that adapt to different conditions, ensuring energy efficiency while enhancing the visual appeal of Soboras Church.
Sustainability ApproachAs part of Kaunas' modernization initiative, the lighting upgrade for Soboras Church emphasizes sustainability. Old metal-halide and sodium-vapor fixtures were replaced with energy-efficient LED fixtures, significantly reducing energy consumption. The new luminaires were selected with a focus on circular economy principles, allowing the light source to be replaced without changing the entire fixture.
In the surrounding square, new luminaires were designed to match the original shape and aesthetic of the old fixtures while incorporating LED technology. All other luminaires are either hidden within architectural elements or equipped with special anti-glare and anti-spill visors to prevent light pollution. Additionally, all fixtures are DALI-controlled, allowing lighting scenarios to be set according to the time of day, minimizing electricity use.
Company DescriptionLighting design and consulting company from Vilnius, Lithuania established in 2010.
