[Members only]City Walk@Ginza

Guangzhou on the north shore of the Pearl River Delta As the saying goes “Eating in Guangzhou,” Cantonese cuisine is prepared in a wide variety of ways using almost anything under the sun. Residents carry that energy into the lighting environment that is equally diverse and full of activity, maybe a symbol of the recent economic development in China. Guangzhou Pearl River In the city limits of Guangzhou the Pearl River runs from west to east. The streets and buildings along the river face the water with people enjoying the night view from various places by cruising, strolling, and dinning. Guangzhou Xia Jiu Lu The pedestrian shopping street Xia Jiu Lu is famous for old shop houses and as a redeveloped entertainment district. Along with Chinese type red lanterns that line this street are an infinite amount of neon and other luminous signage that create a chaotic and exciting atmosphere. Shenzhen from Saige Plaza Tower After being labeled a special economic zone in the 1980`s, the population escalated and transformed the Shenzhen area into a gigantic urban beat. The city grew overnight like an illusion from a virtual world, but the population and high-rise condominium boom keep growing; which makes for an interesting nightscape.

2025.01.15-01.19 Masafumi Yamamoto + Yuichi Anzai About 65 years ago, a vast area at the foothills of the Himalayas was divided into districts for government functions, commerce, education, and residences, with separated roads, creating a landscape completely different from other Indian cities. This survey takes a multifaceted approach to examine Chandigarh’s urban lighting and nightscape, while observing the natural light expressions inspired by Le Corbusier’s architecture. ■Light RaysFirst, I quote the words of Le Corbusier:“Chandigarh is planned on a human scale. It connects to the infinite universe and nature. It is a place for all human activities where citizens can live a rich and harmonious life. Here, the radiance of nature and the heart is within our reach.”A vast paved ground is moistened by a dense white mist. About 180 meters ahead from where I stand, the High Court building faintly appears. Its enormous facade faces east and west. The sky behind peeks from beneath the portico, and the rays of light passing through it gently caress the huge concrete pillars painted red, yellow, and green, casting the morning sun on the ground. In this city, I encountered several lyrical daylight scenes. I believe this is because the philosophy of Atelier Le Corbusier in Paris, who designed this Capitol Complex, also extended to the urban layout. Until now, Chandigarh has been discussed mainly from an architectural viewpoint. However, I feel it has not been explored much from the perspective of…

06 October 2006 Now that the heat of the summer is over, the Lighting Detectives converged on Sankeien Garden in Yokohama to see the new harvest moon glow over traditional Japanese architecture and garden grounds and experience moonlight. Even though it turned out to be a rainy day, we were still positive that the clouds would disappear as we left for Yokohama. Survey By: Yusuke Hattori Stormy Sankeien Garden After a train and bus ride, 22 members of the Lighting Detectives arrived at Sankeien at 4:00 in the afternoon. Of the 17 architectural structures strategically placed around the garden, 12 are labeled Important Cultural Assets and were moved to the garden grounds from Kyoto, Kamakura, and other places from around Japan. The garden has a long distinguished history and in celebration of its 100th Anniversary, the garden was open to visitors at night. In the middle of our moon watching, the weather took a turn for the worse and chased everyone, but the Lighting Detectives indoors. Soaking wet from the waist down and most umbrellas blown inside out, the excitement of the storm faded and members grew weary as dusk set in and the moon came up. Plan B As Lighting Detective spirits and body temperatures started to dip, we all gathered indoors at the Kakushokaku, formally the residence of local merchants, The Hara Family, and recently renovated and restored to original state for the public’s use. The detectives ate…

Mid-Autumn Lantern Workshop 2022.09.10　Singapore Lighting Detectives After 2 years of being quiet during the Mid-Autumn Festival, we were able to finally participate in the community event organised by the local grassroot committee of Tanjong Pagar. We held a lantern-making workshop in the early evening of Saturday, 10 September 2022 in conjunction with the Mid-Autumn Festival. The festivities were organised by a place-making committee Discover Tanjong Pagar overseeing the businesses and people of the district. The theme was “upcycling” and we were limited to the use of recycled materials for the activity. It was tough to collect items like plastic bottles, cardboard boxes and bottle caps 2 weeks before the event to gather enough for around 50pax estimated to turn up. We had assistance from the organiser to obtain tables for our workshop and some recycled bottles. A celebration of mooncakes, tea and lantern walks are commonly seen around the residential neighbourhoods as part of the festivities. There were snack stalls and live music flanking our workshop tables to draw the crowd that was out with their kids. The turnout was weak at the start, around 5pm in the evening. However as it turned to nighttime, the numbers surged and we were overwhelmed until our scheduled walk at 8.30pm. The children ranged from toddlers of 18 months old to adults, with most around 6-10 years old. They had to be supervised by Lighting Detectives volunteers as there was a lot of…

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 appeared in their place. There was no time for theorizing about lighting culture, and the city became engulf in a flood of light. Shanghai is a gathering place for people from all over China. The bear light bulbs hanging in the streets cast skeptical glances over this developing city, but preserve the chaotic charm of the back streets. Daily development and innovation in the Pudong Xingqu District. Architecture from the colonial period is still standing in Bund, but the glitzy lights are more liable to catch one`s eye.