Light in Architecture

fournatural light – bringing the outside inside

Opposite page Second Temple of Hera, Paestum, southern Italy, 460–450BC.

Had I not seen the sunI could have borne the shadeBut light a newer wildernessMy wilderness has made.

– Emily Dickinson, Had I not seen the Sun¹

Hellenic Light

The notion of classical light naturally leads us to Greek architecture, set in the full radiance of the Mediterranean sun. Ancient Greek architecture is delineated by light and shadow – be it on an urban or domestic scale. Greek residences formed a microcosm of the city-state itself, built around a large central courtyard with lighting patterns comparable to those of ...