Ever since the new library was finished I have wanted to go and see it, so 15 members of the Lighting Detectives gathered around dusk for the Tama Art U. campus version of a city walking tour. It is well known that the architect is Toyo Ito and furniture designed by Kazuko Fujie, but for the past 10 years Professor Satoshi Tabuchi has been coordinating the architectural and developmental planning of Tama Art U. Campus. In spite of his busy schedule Prof. Tabuchi was able to give the Lighting Detectives a private campus tour. The library was built on a hill and the first floor slopes with this natural incline. It was a little bit peculiar and although, I have experienced a non-horizontal park built by Arakawa + Gin before, a sloping floor aroused a slight strangeness. I was taken back to the feeling of running around in the sandlot as a child or walking uphill on a faraway. However, while the floor is sloping, all of the tabletops are level. As you sit and concentrate on your work or books you just forget about the sloping floor underfoot. Since we are the Lighting Detectives, out came the luminance meters to calculate floor, table top, vertical, ect. lux levels. I forgot the exact numbers, but tabletop luminance levels were right around 400 lux. This is a good number for super ambient up lighting to the ceiling. Floor lamps with oversized…

Roppongi has many faces including, an entertainment district with a foreign twist, new offices for daily business, and is developing as a center for the Tokyo art scene. The Lighting Detectives sped around on their bikes in April to discover what kind of light exists in this multi-functional area. The presence of the entertainment district is strongly felt at Roppongi intersection. Most people recognize this intersection as the center of Roppongi, but in recent years new development has created two new areas of focus, leaving the center of Roppongi very ambiguous. Points of reference include Mori Tower, Midtown Tower, Tokyo Tower and the metropolitan expressway, that cuts through, dividing this area of Tokyo. Large-scale luminous signage and a collage of other miscellaneous lighting dominate the view. Looking toward Roppongi from Aoyama Cemetery. The 3 towers that stand pronounced over Roppongi are a product of power and force, but appear alien in this setting. The towers look close and, yet, far off, as this scene can play tricks on your eyes.

Interviewer:　Tsutomu Nagatsu Moonlight in the City, Moonlight in the Mountains Nagatsu　Today I`d like to talk about moonlight in the mountains.   I like to go mountaineering, how about you?  Do you climb mountains? Mende　I don’t have any experience climbing real mountains as you do, but  I have hired a Sherpa and gone on a 3-day trekking excursion through the Annapurna Mountains in Nepal.  We stayed in tents and the starry sky I saw when I woke up in the middle of the night brought me to tears. Nagatsu　Really!  You can get so much more from nature on an overnight trip compared to a day trip.  The gradual transition of time and the nightlife is exciting.  Whenever I go to the mountains you can almost always find me carrying a tent and plans for at least one night’s stay.  I find tenting is more versatile for night wanderings than staying in a cabin. All of my mountaineering has been within Japan and  I have climbed the Japanese Alps from the northern regions to the south.  Every year I have a  20kg pack on my back and make a few trips to the mountains.  In the mountains, dusk is an exceptional time of day.  Only those that make the trip can really experience this time of day.  After dusk, it gradually gets darker and darker until you find yourself surrounded by the ink-black night.  Then, all of a sudden, moonlight illuminates your surroundings…

East meets west in the Islamic streets of Istanbul, as quite unique light are unleashed. Light from many different directions is churned together, as in the bright light particles of the bazaar and the interiors of the mosque. A testimony of the Islam Religion is in the minaret floating in the silent shadows and the blue moon reflected in the Bosporus. From a hill above the old town, the moon reflects in the Bosporus Strait. The faint residential lights and hushed silence create a spiritual-like setting. The tall minaret towers emphasize the silhouettee of Hagaia Sofia (also spelled Ayasofya). During the summer months sound and light interact on the grounds in a dramatic show for viewers. Sound and light mysteriously interact inside the Blue Mosque. Visitors are left wondering: Where is the light coming from? Where is the sound coming from?

The new cityscape in Potsdamer Platz is a symbol for the new Berlin. Like light, the shadow from the wall that separated the east and west has dwindled to nothing, but some things still stay the same. The light along Ku-Damm Street still creates a gentle axis of light, providing a welcoming atmosphere for the bustle of people. The Sony Center, with its impressive rooftop called the Fujiyama. The Siegassaule, a symbol of east and west division and unification, stands out in illumination. The showcases along Ku-Damm Street continue for 2km. This street transforms by night into a sidewalk light by large lantern-like show windows.