RAIRAI gorge
Kaiun bridge
Chikuro Hiroike memorial hall
Lighting Design Studio LUME is based in Sendai, a city located in the heart of the northeast Japan.
In an age in which the population of Japan continues to shrink, the future state of rural areas is being questioned. We use light to bring the splendid landscapes and buildings exclusive to the region, undiscovered even by locals, into the foreground. In doing so, we enrich the lives of those living close by. In some cases, our work opens up the eyes of the surrounding residents to the beauty of the region, at which point it becomes the foundation for them to cultivate their very own tourist spot.
Our work does not consist of simply making the lighting design plans we are commissioned with. Instead, we are expected to approach the local population through workshops, involve them in the operation and installation of the lights, think about the surrounding businesses and turn the plan into a venture that brings revenue to the region and creates a new means of communication.
Questions about who to involve and what is possible with local resources arise. We want to take local energy as far as possible. Working together with the local population while protecting an outsider’s perspective is essential.
The illumination of buildings and landscapes also changes through technology. With the boundaries dissolving between the lighting designer, videographer and lighting technician, we involve a wide range of professionals—such as those who don’t rely exclusively on light, instead speaking to all five senses, or those who work with a variety of materials—to create details that strike a balance between the lighting equipment and the building and construct spaces that reflect these professionals’ preferences for light quality.
“How can we use light to make our client happy?” Every lighting design project we take on, from residential areas to cities, falls under the same theme.
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Area of our projects
City master plan, lighting event, public space, park, museum, gallery, airport terminal, office building, hospital, clinic, religious building, school, kinder garden, elderly housing, shop, residential building, etc.
