Artificial Light: Its Influence upon CivilizationLuckiesh, Matthew
History
Artificial Light: Its Influence upon Civilization
Luckiesh, Matthew
Electric lighting; Lighting -- History
Until recently artificial light was costly and the householder in common
with other users of light did not concern himself with the question of
adequate and artistic lighting. His chief aim was to utilize as little
as possible, for cost was always foremost in his mind. The development
of the science of light-production has been so rapid during the past
generation that adequate, efficient, and cheap artificial light finds
mankind unconsciously viewing lighting with the same attitude as he
displays toward his food and fuel bills. Another consequence of this
rapid development is that mankind does not know how to extract the joy
from modern artificial light. This is readily demonstrated by analyzing
the lighting of middle-class homes.
The cost of light has been discussed in another chapter and it has been
shown that it has decreased enormously in a century. It is now the most
potential agency in the home when viewed from the standpoint of cost.
The average householder pays less than twenty dollars per year for
ever-ready light throughout his home. For about five cents per day the
average family enjoys all the blessings of modern lighting, which is
sufficient proof that cost is an insignificant item.
In order to simplify the discussion of lighting the home the terminology
of electric-lighting will be used. The principles expounded apply as
well to gas as to electricity, and owing to the ingenuity of the
gas-lighting experts, the possibilities of gas-lighting are extensive
despite its handicaps. There are some places in the home, such as the
kitchen and basement, where lighting is purely utilitarian in the narrow
sense, but in most of the rooms the esthetic or, more broadly, the
psychological aspects of lighting should dominate. Pure utility is
always a by-product of artistic lighting and furthermore, the lighting
effects will be without glare when they satisfy all the demands of
esthetics.
In dealing with lighting in the home the householder should concentrate
his attention upon lighting effects. Unfortunately, he is not taught to
do so, for everywhere he turns for help he finds the discussion directed
toward fixtures and lamps instead of toward lighting effects. However,
these are merely links in the chain from the meter to the eye. Lamps are
of interest from the standpoint of quantity and quality of light, and
fixtures are of importance chiefly as distributers of light. These
details are merely means to an end and the end is the lighting effect.
Of course, the fixtures are more important as objects than the wires
because they are visible and should harmonize with the general
decorative and architectural scheme.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account