Project Name: Manatj Park, Perth City Link
Practice Name: Plan E
Project Address: King Street, Perth City Link
Demonstrate that a professional lighting design was undertaken for this project?
Lighting Design & Calculations undertaken by ETC Engineering
What was the main design objective for the lighting scheme?
Manatj Park is an urban forest, designed to create a calm oasis within the harsh urban fabric of the city. The light design was envisioned to create a subtle, warm and inviting atmosphere in the centre of Perth City Link. In turn providing a softer and more relaxed ambiance compared to the otherwise very corporate and cold CBD nightscape.
Demonstrate how lighting complements the design of the space by day?
The lighting design has been detailed to ensure that visible light fixtures are minimised as much as possible, to create a very clean and sophisticated appearance. A key focus was to reduce the reliance on pole top lights to an absolute minimum, keeping the ground plane as open and uncluttered as possible. These objectives were achieved through thoughtful integration of lighting within furniture and sculptural built elements in the design.
Showcase how lighting enhances the use and experience of the space after dark?
The use of warm white lighting subtly integrated within the furniture and built elements, creates an inviting and relaxed nightscape. Hidden recessed strip lighting under timber benches and concrete walls provide sufficient light to guide people through the space and create a sense of discovery, as seating elements transform at night into alluring floating islands. The incorporation of catenary and lights within the steel ribbons which weave over the space, creates a more informal and relaxed ambiance in what is a very urban environment. The catenary lighting gives a festive feel while the very small & discrete lights allowed us to light tree canopies and pathways from an almost imperceptible light source. This subtle detail means people are not affected by light source glare and adds a sense of intrigue to where the light is coming from.
Highlight lighting creativity, problem-solving and thinking-outside-the-box?
The design endeavoured to reduce light poles and ground plane cluttered as much as possible. This was achieved through the innovative use of small and catenary lighting which was seamlessly integrated into the design of the steel ribbons. The ribbons rise over and weave across the space, allowing us to conceal lights and suspend catenary lighting off of the ribbon. As the ribbon is constructed from hollow steel tubing, all the electrical cabling is neatly concealed within the tube. Although the ribbons are supported by a few columns, these supports have been located in garden beds keeping the space open and flexible for public use. The catenary and lights being fully adjustable allowed us to achieve a compliant lux level for safety requirements yet provided flexibility for creating a much more sophisticated and relaxed space than using pole top lights.
How did you take Dark Sky considerations (prevention of lighting pollution) into account for this project?
Our focus was to mitigate light pollution wherever possible. Up-lighting isn’t used anywhere in the project, all light fixtures are either recessed or directional to ensure light is efficiently used. In order to light tree canopies the directional lights are position facing sideways and slightly downward from the ribbon, creating a beautiful warm glowing light in tree canopies without up-lighting/pollution.
Back to Submissions Home