Architecture, Light and Urban Screens

This seminar explores the history, theory and practice of architectural illumination and the notion of electric light as a "building material." We will also consider the current interest in urban screens and media facades. The course will follow a historic trajectory from ca. 1900 to the present and will introduce the students to the most important techniques, protagonists and critical debates over the past 100 years. We will critically examine the broader implications of lighting design, the tension between luminous advertising and architectural illumination, the relationship to stage lighting, the implications of a "nocturnal modernity" and the use of light for propaganda purposes. Enrollment limited to 20. Instructor permission required. A