Other topics
Whether ceiling, wall or floor – rarely do living spaces have only one light source. Lighting scenes combine general lighting with accents, direct and indirect lighting. Lighting accents lend character to a private home with just a few means and display furniture and works of art. The general lighting does not only refer to the floor – vertical lighting expands the spatial ambience and determines our impression of brightness. In the health sector there is an additional aspect: light becomes almost existential in old age or in situations of physical impairment; wallwashing in combination with accent lighting creates optimal visual conditions in care homes. A feeling of security can be conveyed with bright, friendly illuminated rooms and balanced contrasts in brightness.
In few other areas does light need to suit such a wide range of activities in so small a space as in the home. From the kitchen, where spices are measured meticulously but also lively dinners are held. In the living room, where the whole family celebrates and plays but also gathers to relax on the sofa. The best example is the living room as the place in our home where we settle into a comfy chair with a good book but also celebrate in style with the whole family. Differentiated lighting design and LED photometrics offer the perfect solution to meet these apparently contrary requirements: uniform vertical illuminance defines the brightness in the room; precise accent lighting creates hierarchies and provides the necessary visibility on writing and work surfaces. Light islands set off seating areas or reading corners scenically from other areas of the room. A further key factor is the colour temperature of the lighting, optionally generating cosy warm white light or dynamically fresh neutral white light.
The light island for the reading corner, a sharp-edged spot for the new photo on the wall, the linear beam for brilliant light when cooking: “focal glow” plays a more prominent role in private residences than “ambient luminescence”, which provides general lighting for orientation. Accent lighting can underline the individual character of a room efficiently with a few simple means: houseplants, artwork and other objects are emphasised precisely with different light distributions and brightness contrasts. LED light is also ideal for modelling objects brilliantly giving them an almost three-dimensional appearance or to make a feature of materials and surface textures of leather, wood or glass. Light scenes help to structure the light in a room in order to serve different purposes: when dimmed, the brilliant light of the pendant luminaire transforms a temporary workplace into a dinner table; and in the evening, accent lighting on a painting shifts the focus away from the area around the window and onto the artwork.
Vertical illuminance achieves sustainable ambient lighting in private residences more effectively than horizontal light of the same connected load, by optimising the spatial impression of brightness. In addition, it gives small rooms and narrow hallways a higher and more spacious appearance. Thanks to the brilliance and uniformity of LED light, wallwashing adds a decorative effect to shelves and, for example, makes book spines easy to read.
The demands placed on the quality of light in the lighting design for living spaces differs little from the requirements of high-end restaurants, wellness applications or galleries. Good colour rendition ensures that our food looks appetising, the mirror reflects our authentic self and we can judge the colour of our outfit correctly. Luminaires with warm white light emphasise the character of the living space and can generally be dimmed with standard dimmers.
Designing the places in which we live deserves our full attention, as they mirror our attitude to life and provide a place of refuge from everyday life. At home, we want to be with people we love and value. Working, eating, reading, sleeping, playing, thinking – hardly any other place combines such diversity of functions on so small a space as the place in which we live. ERCO lighting solutions bring this flexibility to any situation. Wallwashers, ceiling washlights and downlights in a compact shape make room to live even in confined spaces – with brilliant and warm LED light reliably creating an atmosphere of individuality and wellbeing.
ERCO’s Spherolit spotlights help to create an individual ambience in the home. Wallwashers, on the other hand, can make smaller homes appear larger and brighter. The pendant luminaires in ERCO’s range add an elegant eye-catcher, their perfect colour rendition and brilliance suited as much for a family meal as for an intimate dinner for two. The light distributions can be adjusted to the shape of the table. Spotlights mounted on track offer flexibility for those who like to redecorate: easy to rearrange without tools, they can be realigned, dimmed manually and equipped with different ERCO lenses. Downlights, floor and wall washlights illuminate hallways and staircases with optimum efficiency. Picture-perfect light is the promise that ERCO’s lighting solutions keep with LED technology and a specially developed lens system. Exceptional energy efficiency and low maintenance of the LED lighting tools combine to deliver economical illumination.
