Design-for-emergence: Balancing light and darkness in the complexity of urban life and space

Abstract

The experience of a city at night, positive or negative, is shaped, in part, by a balance of natural darkness and the light we introduce. All too often these complimentary elements are not considered congruently and designed outside of the physical, social or ecological context that they sit within. The importance of negotiating a balance of light and darkness in cities is underscored as research continues to reveal the extent of the deleterious effects anthropogenic light has on all aspects of ecology, from species decline to human health. Balancing light and darkness in the nuanced typologies of places within cities is challenged further by a gap between guidelines, written so broadly as to be applicable to all contexts, and regulations that, by their nature, apply to a highly specific and narrow set of contexts. This leaves the illumination of many of our most important shared public spaces without guidance. This thesis looks at light and darkness as part of the Complex Adaptive Systems of cities and communities. Complex adaptive systems are emergent, interactions between the different elements of a system allow new behaviours, patterns, or qualities to emerge. Rather than designing an end result design-for-emergence aims to design the building blocks or create the conditions to allow users to define and evolve any number of outcomes. Design-for-emergence acknowledges the context specific knowledge of users and gives control to them. The approach of design-for-emergence is applied to a case study of a lighting design proposal for a public square in southwest London. Emergence is employed in the design process, to engage the opinions of the local community, and as a path to developing site-specific guidelines for light and darkness. The intent is that this process will produce an emergent space, where positive experiences of light and darkness create the conditions for life to emerge and continue to evolve in this shared public place.

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A master programme thesis from Aalborg University

Design-for-emergence: Balancing light and darkness in the complexity of urban life and space