Light up the wall

Yuichiro Noguchi
Aug 26
4 min read

The fixed concept of "lighting is attached to the ceiling" is ruining the moment of the night. It may sound like too much to say that, but I would like to think about why the lighting should be on the ceiling in the first place.

First of all, the biggest advantage of lighting on the ceiling is that you can efficiently illuminate the entire room with fewer lighting fixtures. If you want to illuminate the whole thing with one light, everyone should think that it makes sense to place it in the center of the room. However, in that case, it should not necessarily be the ceiling. The most efficient thing is that the height should be at the center, but it can't be installed without tables and shelves, so as a result, the ceiling is the least in the way.

However, only functional and efficient aspects are prioritized there, leaving the atmosphere of the lights and people's emotions behind. Lighting not only illuminates the space in terms of functionality, but also greatly affects the quality of the space, such as light, darkness and color, depending on the light emitted from it. There is no value other than work efficiency when spending time under the lighting that illuminates every corner. Even if it is a place where people's emotions are not so important, such as offices, factories, supermarkets, etc., can you say that living under such lighting in your home is really a good environment for people?

"A living space where you can live efficiently without wasteful space." In words, I feel like it gives a really mechanical and lack of humanity, but in fact, I think that most of the elements required in today's living space are summarized in this word. "Houses are machines for living" is the words of French architect Le Corbusier, which was once born from the antithesis of excessive decorative culture in the early 20th century, but modern houses that have eliminated all decorations and waste are humanized. I can't help but feel the impression that it is no longer suitable for the environment in which people live.

From the 19th to the early 20th century, the art and architecture world rejected the old values represented by the words of Adolf Roth, who said that "decoration is sin" from the previous stylistic and aesthetic culture, and transitioned to a new functional and rationalism. More than 100 years have passed since then, seeking humanity from excessive functional and rationalism, and now the review of decorative culture is about to begin. Looking at the clothing culture in recent years, you will not get bored with unique clothing and hairstyles, and excessive fashion such as piercings, tattoos, colored contacts, and hair dyeing are no longer even grotesque, and the decoration in fashion is no longer "over the past There is even a feeling that it presents an appearance like "I can't help it."

By the way, the title "Illuminate the Walls with Lights" is exactly about the ceiling filled with countless downlights and a living space wrapped in sparkling brightness, just like the aforementioned architecture and fashion. It's Chitese. After hundreds of years of history when lights were placed on the ground and floors, it was only about 100 years ago that they came to stick to the ceiling like in modern times. Moreover, it has only been about 60 years since the ceiling of ordinary Japanese households began to be lit.

The overhead lighting may be overly bright to illuminate every corner, and as a result, it may continue to cause strong stress. In order to escape from such an environment, I think it would be a good idea to change the lighting from the ceiling to a place close to our hands.

The white walls and ceilings that diffuse the light of the ceiling have the effect of a reflex board and diffuse efficiently even with a small amount of light. On the other hand, lighting mounted within reach of the wall can get enough brightness even if it is not as bright as the ceiling. The soft light at the end of the line of sight illuminates the wall with moderate brightness, and the indirect light gives the space a bright and gorgeous impression. The light reflected on the wall makes the texture of the wall stand out more clearly. Rather than vinyl cloth, plaster and painting will emphasize the texture of the material and create a more attractive space, and the warm beige color of the wall can reproduce the beautiful amber light of the light bulb rather than white. After that, if you prepare a few necessary task lights as many as you need, you will have a light environment that is friendly to those who need enough. Living under such a soft light will surely be able to spend a calm and comfortable time freed from the stress of the day.

We recommend that you throw away the fixed concept such as "lighting is to be put on the ceiling" and start by placing the necessary lights at hand. By doing so, we will gradually be able to see things that we have not seen before, and a number of small discoveries that we have not noticed before may change our lives.