About the awards
The [d]arc awards is a unique concept utilising arc and darc magazines’ reputation as being the most widely read and respected lighting design publications in the world. In collaboration with creative consultants Light Collective, we have created a unique opportunity to get every practice involved in the awards process.
Anyone can enter (lighting designers, architects, interior designers or manufacturers), but here’s the exciting bit – once the shortlist has been chosen by an international jury of lighting designers, independent lighting designers, architects and interior designers will be invited to vote on their favourite projects and products making this the only truly peer-to-peer lighting design awards in the world.
All projects and the companies who have submitted them, will be present on the awards website so that, over time, it becomes a comprehensive online lighting design resource that can be used by designers and clients for inspiration.
The entry
Project Thouse Garden
Location Bacolod City, Philippines
Lighting Design Christine Sicangco Lighting Design, Philippines
Lighting Suppliers Endo Lighting, LEDSC4, Play LED, Forma, Klewe
With the advent of the pandemic, my husband and I (both lighting designers) were locked down in our weekend home in Bacolod, south of Manila. This home includes the Main House, a Garden and the Thouse, an entertainment area that was built to augment the lack of entertainment space of the original of house.
With the Philippines implementing one of the longest and strictest lockdown in Asia if not the world, on site landscape lighting mock ups for the various commercial and residential projects suddenly became an impossibility. We had to find ways to be able to continue and coordinate the landscape lighting design properly with our office Manila.
With working from home in place, our very own garden became a mini Lighting Laboratory. Finally, we had the time to thoroughly study and mock up the various lighting fixture samples from different manufacturers that were sent to our office in Manila and shipped out to the province.
As months went by and the lock down continued with no end in sight and the garden became a refuge of peace and tranquility that extended into the night. As soon as work ended the garden became a place where we could relax and even escape from the worries of the world. Color Temperature of 3000˚K was used and a combination of uplighting and moon lighting was used with varying beams spreads depending on the plant species.
The lighting of the Main House and Thouse communicates with one another as the view from the main house is the Thouse and vice versa. Only the columns where lighted for the Main house. For the Thouse the landscape lighting became part of the lighting composition both in front and at the back.
Behind the THouse is a giant tropical fern tree that is lighted from several points below. This fern tree becomes an anchor that draws one in the Thouse. The glass doors and windows on wood framing makes it possible to blur the line between the outdoor and the indoor. Very important especially in the tropics
The steps to the THouse is lighted by a concealed fixture on a nearby tree that is aimed through the leaves creating a dappled effect on the steps. Motion sensor solar bollards was tucked in the sides of the steps for additional lighting and safety.
On the left of the Main House is a lighted Eugenia Wall that separates the service area at the back. At the right side is a rotunda with brick pavers and Capiz balls on the Ficus Tree. This very well lit rotuda serves as the area where guests can park and maneuver their cars when going out.
We are truly grateful that we are able to use “LIGHT” to transform the Thouse garden into a place where we can relax and rest especially when quarantined for long periods of time during this pandemic.
