A Fine Mesh

Envue Homburg Licht have created a hugely ambitious catenary lighting project to bring safety and well-being to the German city of Bielefeld

The colour capability can be used colourfully and dynamically on important occasions such as the Bielefeld Night Views, Christmas or the traditional Leineweber Festival.

Catenary lighting projects are rare in many countries. Little wonder, for they add a layer of mechanical complexity not seen with post-top lighting, and a headache for the structural consultants.

Done well, however, they can be magical, putting luminaires in impossible places. So it is in the city of Bielefeld in North Rhine-Westphalia.

After a planning phase of almost two years, 25 circular luminaires – dubbed ‘Night Suns’ – shine above Jahnplatz square.

They are part of a large-scale redesign concept for the city's central hub and play a central role in both ensuring traffic safety and contributing to the well-being of visitors, especially during festivals and events.

The Night Suns were specially developed for Bielefeld by the Berlin lighting design studio Envue Homburg Licht.

While the direct light of the spotlights safely guides road traffic and pedestrians, especially in the evening hours, the RGBW lighting provides a soft glow.

This can be used colourfully and dynamically on important occasions such as the Bielefeld Night Views, Christmas or the traditional Leineweber Festival, when the centre hosts mix of street theatre, street food and music.

The Night Suns are part of a large-scale redesign concept for the city's central hub and play a central role in both ensuring traffic safety and contributing to the well-being of visitors.

‘This project was particularly challenging for our team,’ Hannes Wohlgemuth, CEO of ewo, told designing lighting global (dlg) magazine.

‘It combines extensive knowledge and experience from many different specialist disciplines, from mechanical design and the special requirements of lighting technology to electronics and our control software for managing complex lighting scenes, which was individually adapted to the project requirements.

‘Together with the planner and client, an overall solution was developed, the successful and efficient implementation of which is only made possible by our wide-ranging and interdisciplinary expertise, all of which we bundle in-house.

‘This is a project that combines ewo's accumulated know-how and of which we are particularly proud.’

While the direct light of the spotlights safely guides road traffic and pedestrians, especially in the evening hours, the RGBW lighting provides a soft glow.

PROJECT CREDITS

Product: ewo Individual with nodexx smart modules

Lighting design: Envue Homburg Licht

Photographs: Nikolai Benner