Chapel of St. Ignatius, Seattle, WA

Authors: Lisa Anderson, John Anderson, Talia Reyna, and Miranda Roberts

School: University of Idaho
Faculty Advisor: Professor Bruce Hagland and Professor Sandy Stannard

This project explores the lighting of Chapel of St. Ignatius. It is supposition that physical and spiritual spaces within the chapel are defined by the interdependent interplay of light, color, and architectural elements rather than any one element working alone. Light and color are manipulated by architectural features such as walls, baffles, windows, ceiling, floor, and their surface textures and materials. Specific issues of this study concern the following lighting characteristics of the chapel:

• How light defines spaces spiritually and physically
• Color as an additional space-defining element
• Lighting changes throughout a given day
• The comparison of natural and electrical lighting

In conclusion to the lighting study of the Chapel of St. Ignatius, the authors discovered that the defining of physical and spiritual spaces through the combined interaction of light color and architectural elements plays a huge role in the experience of the chapel. Not only does each bottle in the chapel have a unique use, appearance, and experience enhanced by lighting, but every visit to the chapel is different because of the lighting changes that take place with the passage of time. It is not just the light itself, but these other integral elements that make such dramatic manipulations possible.

All contents copyright (C) 1998. Vital Signs Project. All rights reserved.

Created: 10/16/98

http://www-archfp.ced.berkeley.edu/vitalsigns/bld/casestudies/abstracts/idaho_ignatius_ab.html