The Lighting Control Innovation Award was created in 2011 as part of the Illuminating Engineering Society’s Illumination Awards program, which recognizes professionalism, ingenuity and originality in lighting design. LCA is proud to sponsor the Lighting Control Innovation Award, which recognizes projects that exemplify the effective use of lighting controls.
This month, we explore a church relocation in New York City, which was recognized with as Lighting Control Innovation Award of Merit in the 2024 IES Illumination Awards. Lighting and control design by Luminous Flux, LLC. Photography by Sean Hemmerle Studio.
This project brought new life and a revived sense of community to an historic house of worship. The architectural, lighting, and control designs work seamlessly together to bring out the rich history of both the building and the community which now calls it home. Care was taken to provide an interior that is visually comfortable for a multi-generational congregation while celebrating the historic woodwork present in the elaborate, Bohemian Gothic interior while integrating and supporting daylight via the newly commissioned and restored stained glass. The existing lanterns were refurbished rather than replaced and include multiple control zones to allow for individual control of focused downlights and ambient glow. The control system is an integral aspect of the lighting design and is one of the tools used to bring this space to life.
In addition to the worship spaces, the project includes a church day school, congregational gathering spaces, a senior center, and a commercial kitchen serving thousands of meals per ear. The design team’s challenge was to provide a lighting control system that supports and enhances these functions while meeting local energy codes and respecting the historic architecture that houses the project. A primarily wireless system was chosen to minimize the quantity of wiring and conduit incursions into the existing buildings. The use of advance controls provided additional flexibility to use exterior spaces at night and to allow the historic bell tower to play an important visual role.
The lighted façade now serves as a beacon and enhances a sense of place within the surrounding neighborhood. The bell tower displays the seasonally changing colors of the church vestments, acting as a visible reminder of the passage of ritual time. This use of color required integration of a DMX-512 system to allow the bell tower to change throughout the year.
The newly expansive interior includes new stained glass Half of the windows are backlit to blend with daylight coming through the Nave and adjacent windows.
The lanterns are controlled in two zones; downlight and glow can be individually adjusted. This allows the room to function visually for the multi-generational congregation.
The 900-year-old baptismal font was moved from the congregation’s previous home as were the 100+ year-old stained-glass windows. Both are thoughtfully highlighted.
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