Designer Insights: Randy Burkett

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AN ILLUSTRIOUS CAREER IN ILLUMINATION

Lighting designer Randy Burkett shares insights from some of his latest and greatest projects and looks into the future of RBLD.

By Vilma Barr, contributing editor

Randy Burkett is a charter member of the group of North American lighting design innovators who initiated their careers in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Over the last 33 years, he has grown Randy Burkett Lighting Design (RBLD) into a major specialty lighting consulting practice based in St. Louis. His incredibly diverse portfolio is filled with extraordinary and distinguished projects including the world-renowned Gateway Arch in St. Louis, the Utah State Capitol in Salt Lake City, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Now, he is talking with Architectural SSL about some of the latest and greatest projects he’s been involved with over his illustrious career in illumination. What’s Next for RBLD? Introducing RBLD “I’ve been considering how to transition over the next few years,” says Burkett. In July, Randy Burkett and Lisa Reed of Envision Lighting Design announced the merger of their two St. Louis-based firms into ReedBurkett Lighting Design. The new firm is certified as a Women Business Enterprise in Missouri and Illinois and has similar national certifications. The merged team includes LEED and WELL accredited professionals. “With environmentally responsible design as a pillar of our team, the merger means a combined portfolio of design expertise,” states Randy.

Projects on the boards: Tower of the Americas, San Antonio; National Ornamental Metals Museum, Memphis; Powell Symphony Hall Expansion, St. Louis; 1000 M, Chicago; Cathedral Basilica interior lighting, St. Louis.

RANDY BURKETT, FIALD, FIES, LC

REEDBURKETT LIGHTING DESIGN

7' - 0"

5' - 0"

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0' - 9" 29' - 3 1/2"

LIGHTING A CONCERT HALL

In September 2021, the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Belmont University in Nashville opened to resounding applause. Designed by the architectural team at ESa, led by David Minnigan, the building was fashioned after a traditional European opera house but is considered to be one of the best performing arts centers on a university campus. The lighting design, provided by RBLD, also successfully balanced the traditional aesthetic with the top-tier performance expectations.

For proof, look no further than the lobby, where three stunning chandeliers, constructed by Crenshaw Lighting, are both classic in profile to blend with the Corinthian capitals and contemporary in their overall effect.

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FISHER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

Belmont University, Nashville, Tenn.

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These custom multi-tiered brass ring chandeliers contain decorative elements inspired by other architectural details found elsewhere in the building. 25W LED medium base filament lamps were used to best mimic a historic look.

To determine exact positioning of the fixtures, RBLD worked with the artists who designed and provided the full-height arch-top windows. The faceted glass creates color reflections during the daytime. The choice of the faux filament LED sources also created nighttime refractive effects when the glass is viewed from outdoors by passersby.

The contemporary ceiling of the Fisher Center lobby stands in contrast to the classic grandeur designed throughout the rest of the building. The ceiling surface was constructed from a 40-mm BHASWA Phon plaster system with a post-consumer marble finish that manages sound. Measuring approximately 40 ft. × 75 ft., with curved side wall returns, the clean, crisp lines in the ceiling were part of the architect’s vision for the volume. Linear, soft-faced LED sources, 3000K, with a 0-10V control system were integrated into the acoustical surface too. “Light’s role was to emphasize the linear aspects of the coffer delineation,” says Burkett. THE THREE-STORY GRAND LOBBY IS JUST ONE INCREDIBLE SPACE IN THIS $180 MILLION MASTERPIECE.

LIGHT’S ROLE WAS TO EMPHASIZE THE LINEAR ASPECTS OF THE COFFER DELINEATION IN THE LOBBY AT THE CONCERT HALL.

DESIGNING A MEMORIAL

For those who may not have had the opportunity to see this first-hand, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, located on the National Mall, features a 30-ft.-high sculpture that captures the image of Martin Luther King, Jr. emerging from a stone with a thoughtful and resolute expression. David Mintz, who was responsible for the lighting of the Jefferson Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial, was offered the commission to light Dr. King’s memorial as well. Because he was nearing retirement, he asked Randy Burkett to team up with him to complete the project.

“I would say that this was one of the more challenging commissions we have had over the years,” says Randy, “both technically and from the perspective of needing to please such a wide range of stakeholders, including the King Foundation, National Park Service, National Capital Planning Commission, Commission of Fine Arts, and architect McKissack & McKissack, among others.

“The nighttime revelation of the face and upper body of Dr. King’s likeness was very important to the client team. The mock-ups for illuminating this work were done using a pair of personnel lifts. This allowed us to study several possible pole locations and heights, as well as the nuances of color and textures. Distributions, intensities, and glare control were all very important. David Mintz and I spent hours on the site considering every facial feature, hand wrinkle, and jacket fold as each lighting position was studied,” Randy explains.

Ultimately, Bega’s 77 869 large scale floodlights (150W) with narrow beam light distribution were selected to illuminate the silhouette of Dr. King. The fixtures were mounted on two 45-ft.-tall poles, one on each side of the sculpture. Deep, custom-designed, gale control “snoots” greatly minimized stray lights and off-axis glare. In order to render the kind of facial expressions and definition of shadows that the team wanted; the lights were set at a higher perch than the statue itself.

The team was also tasked with illuminating the crescentshaped Inscription Wall that flanks the Stone of Hope. Mintz and RBLD prepared numerous mock-ups, both in-studio and on-site to evaluate lighting strategies. The goal of the lighting on this element was to reveal and make legible the Wall’s carved text, 14 hand-carved quotations chosen from several of Dr. King’s speeches, while creating drama and a sense of place.

The final design featured below-grade luminaires that were installed near the base of the wall at an angle, which succeeded in visually pulling the text out of the background. The elliptipar Style F164s from The Lighting Quotient were modified with internal cross-baffles and located within recessed troughs. The lighting shines through laminated glass panels that were mounted flush with the surrounding pavement. 3500K T5HO lamps were selected to complement both the color and scale of the granite wall panels.

“In the evening, the in-ground fixtures resemble theatrical footlights that heighten the experience of Dr. King’s words,” says Burkett. •

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MEMORIAL

National Mall, Washington, DC