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City Night Walk Vol.064：Skybus Tour 2019.07.26　Anri Sato+ Mutsuro Honma For our 64th Stroll about town, we explored the Tokyo Nightscape using a 2 story open roof bus: Skybus. It was a great drive around town, using Skybus’ Odaiba Nightscape course. While we started the event with some concerns about bad weather, but luckily we were able to enjoy a beautiful summer night drive. A group photo at Odaiba with the rainbow bridge behind us Skybus The Significance of the Skybus tour We started before it got dark Chief Mende-san explaining the point of the bus tour The sunset setting upon the emperor’s residence Under the theme of ‘Rediscovering the nightscape of Tokyo on the Skybus!’, our members all explored the nightscape of Tokyo from a height of 3.8m off the ground. Our route was Tokyo Station → Oukyo (Emperor’s residence) → Tokyo Tower → Shuto Highway → Rainbow Bridge → Odaiba → Shuto Highway → Rainbow Bridge → Tsukiji Market → Ginza → Hibiya → Marunouchi → Tokyo Station The lighting detectives also held the same event in 2013, but as the 2020 Olympics/Paralympics are under a year away, there are heavy development projects occurring all around Tokyo and therefore would perhaps change the nightscape of the city. We were curious to explore how the nightscape of Tokyo has changed especially after the Tsukiji market has moved completely to the Toyosu Market. The highlight of this trip is the nightscape…

Date of Issue: 3 December, 2025・Activity 1 / City Night Survey : Seoul, Korea（2025.10.22-10.25）・Activity 2 / City Night Survey : Shenzhen. China（2025.9.12&9.18） City Night Survey : Seoul, Korea Songdo newcity, Inchon and Seoul city2025.10.22- 2025.10.25 Karen Huang + Xueying Piao + Xianyu Liu The purpose of this Seoul lighting survey is to explore how lighting shapes the city’s identity and cultural expression of the urban landscape in the multiple layers of Seoul.With this purpose in mind, we went to Songdo, Incheon and Seoul for the servey. ■ Songdo InchonOn the first day of our site survey, we visited Songdo International Business District in Incheon. As a flagship planned development in Yeonsu-gu, this new town represents a remarkable urban planning achievement, constructed entirely on reclaimed land – essentially a future-city built from the ground up. The district demonstrates excellent connectivity, with the core area accessible within approximately 90 minutes via bus from Incheon International Airport. By around 8:00 PM, few people are on the street. Our survey focused on the central park area of Songdo. At street level, building facades demonstrated minimal use of decorative flood lighting, relying primarily on internal illumination to create a subdued atmosphere, while the commercial districts utilized abundant illuminated signage to inject vibrancy into the urban landscape. The most critical insight emerged from the view at G Tower: the urban planning framework is distinctly articulated through strategic color temperature zoning, with residential areas at 2700K transitioning to over 5000K…

Theme：Conquering Personal Faults Interviewer:　Hu Lin Lin：Today I`d like to ask your advice about my personality. Compared to other people, I feel like I live on an intense emotional rollercoaster. For example, in the morning I can be just fine and at night I am totally depressed. I have a hard time controlling my emotional state of mind. 練習と経験は何回も必要 恥ずかしがりや Mende：Really?! Your emotions can really go so high and just plummet in such a short period of time?! In just one day?! Lin： Yes, in just a few hours. I can be feeling great, but then all of a sudden I`m really down. In fact yesterday was like that. I just didn`t feel like talking to or interacting with anyone. When I have days like that I can`t explain myself very well in Japanese and I have a hard time communicating. Mende：Lin, I don`t think this has to do with your personality. I think it might have more to do with balancing your emotions. I don`t think it is a problem with your personality, but more of your temperament. Lin：By temperament, do you mean physically speaking? Mende：Not physical as in your actual body, but I was thinking more of mental tendencies. Everyone has different characteristics, physically and mentally. Your personality may lean towards more cognitive thinking and emotion, just like others could be described as shy or bossy. Lin：I think I have one more personality flaw. I can`t speak to people…

“Let’s light up the way to the shrine!” Collaborated with Ito Architectural Sudio.2024.07.13 Noriko Higashi We are invited by Ito Achitecutral Studio and held a children workshop in Omishima Island, Ehime Prefecture. We thought about how we could make the approach at night a beautiful and comfortable space with the children. A children’s workshop of the Ito Juku, which is led by architect Toyo Ito, was held in Omishima, Ehime Prefecture. Mr. Mende and I participated in the workshop as instructors. The theme was “Let’s light up the way to the shrine!” Before the Seto-Ohhashi Bridge was opened, the sole means of transportation to Omishima was by boat. Consequently, the pathway connecting the port to Oyamazumi Shrine on the island used to be very busy. Nowadays, visitors cross the bridge by car and park their cars in the parking lot next to the shrine, so the approach to the shrine is rarely visited and became sparsely populated and quiet. Various efforts are being made to revive the bustle of the approach to the shrine, and this children workshop was one of them. 15 elementary school students from Imabari City joined this workshop and some children came from the neighborhoods, while others rode the bus from outside the island. First, Mr. Mende explained what lighting can do and what kind of light sources are available. He also darkened the room and had the participants look at actual light sources and their…

First Light-up Ninja in China!2025.06.11-06.12 Huangyi Lin Lighting Detectives debuted Light-up Ninja in China (June 2025, Guangzhou). Students created temporary night art with communities, combating light villains through sustainable urban darkness and cultural storytelling. From June 11 to 12, 2025, the “Light up Ninja” flash mob popped up in Nanting Village, Guangzhou University Town—lighting up the night for a moment, then quietly withdrawing. This was the first-ever ‘Light up Ninja’ event in China. We co-organized it with the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, whose faculty members Prof. Lin Hong, Yang Yiding, and Lu Haifeng were excited to join. The event also received support from the Guangzhou Lighting Society and sponsorship, including technical expertise, from CDN Lighting. The main purpose of the event was not to light up the monumental kind, often found extravagantly lighting up towers, bridges, or castles. Instead, it involved simple experiments to find appeal in the typical, by illuminating scenes buried in daily life. We wanted students to learn not just about adding light, but also about eliminating unnecessary or unpleasant light to create beauty and comfort in the nightscape closest to us. ■ DAY 1: June 11Around 30 students, along with LPA and CDN staff and professors, gathered at GAFA’s Art and Light Environment Lab for the opening ceremony. Prof. Lin Hong gave a talk on “Nightscape Lighting for Nocturnal Living,” while Mr. Mende presented “Future of Urban Lighting” and “About Lighting Detectives.” Noriko Higashi then…