Light Column
The Foundling Museum, London
Building architect: Jestico & Whiles, London
2002 - 2003
The
Foundling Museum pivots around a staircase from the original Foundling Hospital
building of 1745, that was established for the education of exposed and deserted
young children in 1739.
The sculptural installation for the skylight over the stair proposes connecting
the roof to the basement with a vertical beam of light and colour provided
by the sun, tying all the activities of the museum together, from the scholarly
research rooms on the top floor to the temporary exhibition space and children’s
play area in the basement.
The staircase will be the main vertical circulation route within the new museum,
and the skylight over it is therefore extremely significant, as a symbol of
the mission of the hospital and museum - bringing natural light to the dark
spaces of the building - and also as a functional component of the architecture,
drawing the eye upward and making the casual visitor aware of the vertical
extent of the museum.
The sculpture seeks to unite the conservation of the existing elements of
the building with a progressive and optimistic view of the future.
At night and at times of low external light levels during the day, a spotlight would light and the heliostat would automatically reposition itself to reflect the beam of artificial light onto the sculpture and into the building.
A vertical light box would establish a visual connection between the roof skylight and its coloured reflection on the lower ground floor. The crisp angled prismatic surfaces of the glass in a horizontal orientation catch the daylight falling in from above and overlay it with a contrasting warm coloured glow from an artificial light source along the lower edge of the light scoop.
