Artificial Light: Its Influence upon CivilizationLuckiesh, Matthew
History
Artificial Light: Its Influence upon Civilization
Luckiesh, Matthew
Electric lighting; Lighting -- History
The home is the theater of life full of various moods and occasions;
hence the lighting of a home should be flexible. A degree of variety
should be possible. Controls, wiring, outlets, and fixtures should
conspire to provide this variety. At the present time the average
householder does not give much attention to lighting until he purchases
fixtures. It is probable that he thought of it when he laid out or
approved the wiring, but usually he does not consider it seriously until
he visits the fixture-dealer to purchase fixtures. And then
unfortunately the fixture-dealer does not light his home; he does not
sell the householder lighting-effects designed to meet the requirements
of the particular home; he sells merely fixtures.
Unfortunately there are few fixtures available which have definite aims
in lighting as demanded by the home. Of the great variety of fixtures
available there are many artistic objects, but it is obvious that little
attention is given to their design from the standpoint of lighting.
That the fixture-dealer usually thinks of fixtures as objects and gives
little or no thought to lighting effects is apparent from his
conversation and from his display. He exhibits fixtures usually en masse
and seldom attempts to illustrate the lighting effects produced in the
room.
The foregoing criticisms are presented to emphasize the fact that
throughout the field of lighting the great possibilities which have been
opened by modern light-sources are not fully appreciated. The point at
which to begin to design the lighting for a home is the wiring.
Unfortunately this is too often done by a contractor who has given no
special thought to the possibilities of lighting and to the requirements
in wiring and switches necessary in order to realize them. At this point
the householder should attempt to form an opinion as to the relative
values. Is artificial lighting important enough to warrant an
expenditure of two per cent. of the total investment in the home and its
furnishings? The answer will depend upon the extent to which artificial
light is appreciated. It appears that four or five per cent. is not too
much if it is admitted that the artificial lighting system ranks next to
the heating plant in importance and that these two are the most
important features of an interior of a residence. A switch or a
baseboard outlet costs an insignificant sum but either may pay for
itself many times in the course of a few years through its utility or
convenience.
It appears best to take up this subject room by room because the
requirements vary considerably, but in order to be specific in the
discussions, a middle-class home will be chosen. The more important
rooms will be treated first and various simple details will be touched
upon because, after all, the proper lighting of a home is realized by
attention to small details.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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