Illuminating Residence

Like the Bohemian artists of times gone by, an increasing number of us are establishing our workplaces at home. So do lighting designers Tobias Link and Oliver Jene. Working out of their German home allows the well-known designers to not only optimize their workflow and concentrate their energies on creative artwork; it provides more freedom, allowing them to enjoy an individualized schedule.

Calling upon their own unique talents as lighting designers, Tobias and Oliver have given their new working and living space its own unmistakable atmosphere using Martin lighting fixtures. The idea behind the installation was to test a dynamic audiovisual environment in everyday life. The result is a made-to-measure environment reflective of their individual needs and desires. Oliver commented, “For a designer who works with people’s emotions nothing is more impressive than his own experience.”

Alien 02 color changers placed at the open stairs in the center of the living space concentrate light and deliver it in any color to all floors. The continuously shifting shades of color provide harmonic atmospheres, especially helpful in warding off the effects of winter depression, Oliver reports. Homogenous wall paint allows single wall elements to stand out against the architecture and blends well with the natural sunlight. The separation between the stairs and the living room was designed in glass in order to reflect the large suspended lamp with its innumerable light spots. At certain viewing angles this causes a “light swarm” that seems to hover freely in the room.

Mood lighting is easily adjusted from one of the work places in the video studio. The lighting scenarios are controlled from a Martin PC-based LightJockey, which is connected to every light switch in the house. The user has full access to all lights in the space via touch screen and can also control music, window blinds and garden irrigation. Video, sound and lighting can be synchronized thus making dramatic sequences possible at freely definable times.

Together with Martin Architectural Germany, Tobias and Oliver will be creating an architectural lighting installation in Frankfurt in conjunction with the Light and Building fair. Located at Oval am Baseler Platz in Frankfurt, the lighting installation will incorporate 90 Cyclo 04, 12 MAC 2000 Profile and 40 MAC 600 washlights. Tobias will also deliver a lecture at the fair: “Architectural Lighting as a Marketing Means”.