Designer sheds light on lighting

Let there be light, and let that light be thought of from the beginning for any building or remodeling project.

Brian Orter, design director for Johnson Light Studio in Manhattan, spoke about the importance of incorporating good lighting design into architectural projects when he spoke recently at the Las Vegas Design Center at World Market Center. Orter was the featured speaker at this month's First Friday event for industry professionals.

"Lighting is one of the most important parts and most overlooked parts of design. It can really make or break a space," he said.

Although he said that lighting is usually an afterthought, Orter stressed how early planning can alleviate problems and actually enhance a project.

"It's harder to bring light into a room once it's done. It's much easier to do while it is being constructed."

Stressing the importance of working on a project in its early stages, Orter said he was able to have timers installed on shutters so the louvers would open and close to follow the sun's pattern providing the necessary light in the room. On a casino project, he said he hid smaller light fixtures within a larger decorative fixture.

Considering the basic types of lighting -- ambient, task and accent or decorative -- Orter said it is best to create different layers of light in a room.

"The more layers you have, the more visually stimulating it can be."

Comparing light to a shiny fishing lure, he said people are naturally attracted to light. To determine what "pops" in a room, he squints his eyes and sees what he is attracted to. If that's an area that should not be in focus, he eliminates or tones down the light there. Vice versa, if it's an area that should be seen, he needs to add more light.

Additionally, proper lighting might be used to help reduce project costs. In one project, Orter said he was able to replace $2,000-a-panel sheers with less expensive cotton curtains and $10 color filters to create the same look.

Orter, who has a background in lighting for the theater, said it helps to approach lighting projects as if he was designing for a stage production.

Obviously, lighting for a stage production helps direct the audiences' attention, he said, adding that it can take on a sinister or happy look just by changing its intensity and color.

When designing for architecture, Orter said he first defines his audience and the characters in that space. That helps him determine the type of lighting he needs and eliminates hundreds of other options.

He then considers what story he is trying to tell, creating story boards much like he would for a theater production. For example, to create "frenetic energy" similar to that from flash bulbs in a nightclub, he would light the area from the front.

Finally, he defines the areas that need to be lit and how they should be lit. Showing photos of a jewelry store, Orter said he took customers on a journey to discover the perfect jewel by the way the store and cases were lit. The ambient light in the store was given a "warm," slight amber tone to make the customers look and feel good, while the diamonds were lit with "cold" halogen lights to enhance their facets and sparkling attributes.

Orter also takes his cues directly from nature.

"I take a lot of photographs when I travel. I observe nature and see how light affects things," he said.

He then uses those photographs to create similar looks in buildings and on their exteriors. By looking at how sunlight filters through trees, he can imagine how light can travel through a decorative screen or glass imprinted with images of leaves, he said.