Outdoor Lighting
Oct. 2—"You need to be careful when lighting outdoors," says local landscape architect Solange Serquis, of Serquis + Associates Landscape Architecture. New Mexico has a Night Sky Protection Act that Serquis wholeheartedly supports, and, she says, "We need to interact with nature and wildlife, not disturb it."
Serquis often tries to emulate the moonlight in her work. She studies the land and observes where the moonlight and shadows appear naturally. She then finds complementary ways to enhance its natural beauty.
Lately, in her designs, she has included water features that cast reflections of light. "Any reflective place is a way to gently bring in light," she says.
Her motto, "Safety first," informs how she thinks of nightscapes as different systems. The first system is for safety: installing lighting at stairs, entryways and places that need additional lighting. Next, Serquis considers what she calls "mood lighting," which has an effect on emotional well-being and takes into consideration the particular needs of the home's occupants. Regardless of the objective, Serquis is always evaluating what will produce the least amount of light pollution to achieve a desired effect.
In order to keep the lighting unique and purposeful, Serquis places lights only where needed. "If you light one corner, it can feel magical," she says. "But if you light the corner next to it as well, the magic can be lost." Serquis believes that it's key to create a limited number of focal points: too many focal points means no focal points.
Serquis says there are ways to be discreet with lighting, with safety in mind, by using low voltage and other techniques. "I love lighting, but with respect for our skies," she says. "You can do both."
New Mexico-based lighting designer Joe Barron agrees, and he, too, prefers to be subtle in his work. He draws inspiration from light artists, such as Land art movement pioneer Walter De Maria. His renowned work Lightning Field in Quemado is an installation that uses natural illumination from the sun and bolts of electricity from desert storms. "The stainless-steel rods glow like neon at sunrise and sunset," Barron says. "They buzz with light. It's really an amazing presence in the landscape and an experience."
Barron works alongside architects and interior designers to conceptualize and actualize lighting environments for local hotels and residents throughout Albuquerque and Santa Fe. And he loves to work with color. Barron cites light artist Dan Flavin, who combines colored lights to construct specific effects, as another source of inspiration. According to Barron, Flavin uses the blend of colors to bounce photons off a corner or surface. He feels it conjures a visceral response. "There's an organic growth that happens when you put colors together," he says. "It's almost spiritual."
Barron wants his clients to experience the "almost spiritual" and also experience their space in different ways. There is a lot to consider when lighting exteriors, he says — placement, light intensity, security and intended effect. His goal is to work with clients to develop their own sense of place. And, like Serquis, Barron considers what will illuminate the environment with the least amount of impact on the night sky. Because, as anyone who knows New Mexico, knows, the colors of our skies and the clarity of our star-filled nights truly make this the Land of Enchantment.
Outdoor lighting
