To grasp lighting environments around the world, the Lighting Detectives have continued to survey local and global cities. Over 70 cities have been surveyed and record in “The World Lighting Journey,” which has become an important database for comparing the many lighting environments around the world.

EUROPE

BERLIN Festival of Lights 2012, Germany

More

Berlin is a multi-cultural city. Amongst the streets dating back to the Middle Ages, are very modern buildings that mysterious blend perfectly with the historical surroundings. In conjunction with this city survey we also attended the Festi…

AMERICAS

LAS VEGAS

More

It is an island of light floating in the desert. Lighting technology in Las Vegas is not sedentary, but reinventing itself daily. How can we seize the inviting eyes of visitors? What is attractive lighting? In this place, day is night and n…

AMERICAS

BUENOS AIRES

More

Buenos Aires, aiming to become the Paris of South America, entertains a long siesta in the afternoon leading to a remarkable late nightlife. The atmosphere of these bright, flourishing streets could easily be mistaken for the middle of the …

OCEANIA

SYDNEY

More

The beautiful nightscape along the bayside is the pride of this tourist town. Picking up momentum from the 2000 Summer Olympics, Sydney is again shifting gears. The waterside at night is full of postcard type scenery with places to see and …

JAPAN

YOKOHAMA CHINATOWN 2011

More

The largest Chinatown in Japan has become an established feature of the Yokohama downtown area, but still an area with its own culture and identity. We surveyed Yokohama to discover the Chinese style of lighting environment alive within Jap…

JAPAN

TOKYO : TOYOSU, FUTAKO TAMAGAWA, & TAKAJIMA DAIRA

More

The Diversity of Condominium Lighting in the Tokyo Area Condominiums play a leading role in housing for the Tokyo Area. As the city grew, busy shopping, business, and entertainment districts are supported by the residences, which live in de…

JAPAN

TOKYO : SHIODOME & SHINBASHI

More

Shiodome Sio-Site was a joint public and private sector redevelopment project completed in 2006. In nearby Shinbashi, eateries and bars built under and into the brick structure of the elevated railway tracks during the Meiji era have become…

JAPAN

TOKYO : IMPERIAL PALACE

More

In the middle of Tokyo is the Imperial Palace, a haven for runners and tourists, alike. The lighting in the palace outer garden and nearby Wadakura Fountain Park has been renewed and replaced with environmentally conscious LED fixtures. We …

JAPAN

TOKYO : SHINJUKU

More

Under a rush of redevelopment, this is a huge period of transition for the area surrounding Shinjuku. On this survey, we were met by soft light filtering out of tall skyscraper windows, brilliant signage on facades and rooftops, and crowds …

JAPAN

Seto Inland Sea of Japan

More

The archipelago, pristine nature, and human footprint all combine to create the highly valued landscape of the Seto Inland Sea. Depending on the season and time of day the inlet and small islands have a store of rich expressions from dusk t…

JAPAN

SENDAI

More

After WW II, Sendai was rebuilt into a modern city with streets perfectly aligned in a gridiron pattern, but mixed with covered arcades. We surveyed the covered arcades and their daily activity along with the annual lighting event Sendai Hi…

JAPAN

SAPPORO

More

The Television Broadcasting Tower looks down on the orange sodium lamps overflowing from the grid patterned streets of Sapporo. While on assignment in December we were able to view the multi-colored White Illumination set up along Ohdori Pa…

JAPAN

OSAKA

More

Along Osaka`s main street, Midosuji, taillights create a river of red light. Osaka’s symbolic shopping district, Dotomobori, is full of Osaka style flare. Redevelopment in Nakanoshima West District continues.

JAPAN

NAGOYA

More

Looking over the Nagoya nightscape from the symbolic Television Broadcasting Tower, Hisaya Boulevard stands out in the center and orange sodium lamps dominate the park below. The new trendy spot in Nagoya, Oasis 21, along Hisaya Boulevard. …

ASIA

TAIPEI, Taiwan

More

The east end of Taipei is really growing and developing with many modern structures like the Taipei 101, the world’s tallest building, looming over the area. But off the main streets and in the back alleys, life is as usual as old buildings…

ASIA

SINGAPORE

More

Singapore has been aiming for a nightscape that catches the viewer wondering, “Is this Asia or western Europe?” In this city of perpetual summer, lighting and air conditioning are necessities to be a modern city. Singapore’s intentions are …

ASIA

SHANGHAI, China

More

Developing Shanghai is propaganda for the world to see, as the streets of Shanghai seem to explode at night under the glitzy lights of this nightscape. One night the groups of row houses were removed, and the next, modern architecture appea…

ASIA

SEOUL, Korea

More

Competing with elaborately planned shop facades, intense Han River bridge illuminations, sign luminaries, and bare light bulbs, all flood the streets with chaotic lights. Multi-colored and thriving on pure energy, the different areas in Seo…

ASIA

MUNBAI, India

More

The infrastructure of Munbai is well built, creating a well-lit road surface from a horrendous traffic situation and colonial technology. In contrast, the chaotic bazaar boasts incandescent lights. Rich and poor, concentrated light and shad…

ASIA

JEJUDO, Korea

More

Rustic scenery and relaxing daily life co-exist on Jejudo Island, where we stopped for a luxurious stay at a resort hotel. White light from fishing boats dot the horizon and clarify the boundary between the dark night sky and black ocean wa…