LIGHT OF LIFE

CHURCH
ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
TOOBA IMTIYAZ
 Architects Location
IISAC, shinslab architecture 105-4 Seolgok-ri, Seorak-myeon, Gapyeong-gun,
Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
◦ The "Light of Life" Chapel can be found at the end of the SeolGok
Road on the south side of the Bori mountain, in Gapyong at 30 km
from Seoul, South Korea. This building is built in the middle of a village
project for retired missionaries initiated by the Protestant and
Presbyterian community Nam Seoul Grace Church. Thus, beyond the
reception of Sunday services, it’s a place of contemplation and
prayer open every day of the week.
Distinction between the outside and the inside. External mass/ Internal
mass. In order to reduce as much as possible the impact of a building
on this very mountainous and forested site, the project tries to melt into
the landscape. The ground floor area of 1500m2 has been established
on the flattest part of the plot, on pilotis and facing South, thus taking
advantage of the orientation for a more open view of the site. Similarly,
using mainly for external coating reflective and transparent materials
such as glass and polycarbonate, the building seeks to echo the image
of nature and reduce the opacity of the built mass. On the other hand,
the main interior space, the chapel, reveals an "internal mass" quite
different, unimaginable from the outside, a world apart, its "own
universe". (Henri Focillon, The Life of Forms,p33) The Protestant religion
has always had as a principle to fight against all forms of idolatry
prohibiting painting and sculpture in its places of worship. Similarly by
refusing any sacredness of space, it has sought a form of simplicity. Yet
the "sub specie aeternitatis" of Spinoza or Kant's “sublime” in front of the
spectacle of nature, have they not to do with the religiosity of a place
of worship? While remaining within the principles of Protestantism and in
the expression of Christian symbolism, the project attempts to bring forth
emotions from a liturgical, philosophical, spiritual and artistic point of
view.
To design for visual comfort, you need
to know how to measure light. The
measurement and perception of light
can be an in-depth topic, and
effectively analyzing daylight requires
being precise with the terms and
metrics used.

Basic Metrics
The "brightness" of light can mean
different things: for example, the
amount of light coming from a light
source is luminous flux (lumens), the
amount of light falling on a surface is
illuminance (lux), and the amount of
light reflected off a surface is
luminance (cd/m2).

These quantities are different

because the farther a surface is from
a light source, the less light that falls
on the surface, and the darker a
surface is, the less incident light it
reflects. This is because light follows
the inverse-square law. For example,
a point source like a candle that
causes an illuminance of 1 lux on an
object one meter away would cause
an illumination of 1/4 lux on the same
object two meters away, or 1/9 lux on
the object when it is 3 meters away.
◦ Luminous Flux and Intensity = Light Coming from a Source
◦ The amount of light being given off by a particular source, in all directions, is called luminous
flux (or “luminous power”) and is a measure of the total perceived power of light. It is measured
in lumens. Lumens are a useful metric for comparing how bright a light source is (i.e. a 60W
incandescent bulb is about 850 lumens – see Electric Light Sources for more about lighting
efficiency).
◦
◦ The human eye perceives light within the “visible spectrum” – between wavelengths of about
390 nm (violet) and 700 nm (red). Humans perceive some wavelengths of light more strongly,
and luminous flux is scaled to reflect this by using the luminosity function. Radiant flux is a
related measure that quantifies the total power of the electromagnetic radiation from a source
and not just visible light but also infrared and ultraviolet light, and is measured in watts.
◦
◦ The amount of light that travels in certain directions from the source is called the "luminous
intensity" and is measured in candelas. A candle emits about one candela in all directions (this
candle would emit a total of 12.6 lumens). Learn more about lumens, solid angles,
and candelas on Wikipedia.
◦
◦ When modeling lighting and daylighting, these properties are coded into the light sources your Daylight Autonomy (DA) and Useful Daylight Illuminances (UDI)
model uses – whether it’s the sun (and the assumed sky conditions), or the light bulbs and Daylight Autonomy (DA) is the percentage of working hours when
fixtures used. lighting needs are met by daylight alone. It is measured by
◦ comparing daylight illuminance on a workplane to the minimum
requirement over time. This is a very popular metric and can tell
◦ Illuminance = Light Falling on a Surface you how often lights need to be on to meet specific illumination
◦ The amount of light falling on a surface is "illuminance", and is measured in lux (metric unit = requirements.
lumen/m2) or foot-candles (English unit = lumen/ft2). 1 footcandle equals 10.8 lux. This is the Useful Daylight Illuminances (UDI) also measures a percentage of
measurement you’ll work with the most for optimizing visual comfort because building time that a space receives adequate daylight, but it also
regulations and standards use illuminance to specify the minimum light levels for specific tasks quantifies when the light levels are too high and too low. UDI is
and environments.
based on three standard bins (which broadly line-up with
◦ This value does not depend on the material properties of the surface being illuminated. comfortable illumination levels cited above).
However, since the amount of light the surface “sees” depends on how much is being reflected Less than 100lux is insufficient daylight
from other surfaces around it, it does depend on the color and reflectance of the surfaces that
surround it. Between 100 lux and 2000 lux is useful daylight
More than 2000 lux is too much daylight and can result in visual
◦ The brightness of the sky is often given using illuminance values measured on an unobstructed and thermal discomfort
horizontal plane.
TOTAL NO OF PEOPLE IN THAT
BUILDING – APPROX 300

PEAK HOURS – 9 TO 4

DOMINATED BY ARCHITECTURE
STUDENTS

NATURALLY DAYLIT

USE OF FANS MOSTLY