The World Lighting Journey is a photo library of nightscapes and lighting environments from cities worldwide. Lighting Detectives hopes this database will be a catalyst for future discussion on urban lightscapes and local lighting culture. Lighting Detectives encourages all web viewers to send nightscape from your hometown to add to our ever-expanding photo library.

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Category: Downward View
Photo by: SHOMEI TANTEIDAN
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GLOBAL RESEARCH

BARCELONA, Spain

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Barcelona is a city of monuments, whether driving or walking, these unforgett- able symbols of Barcelona are everywhere. At night, the lights of the city further jog one’s memory and create distinctive perspective projections. Streaks from xenon lamps radiate from the top of the Nacional Palace leaving a graphical pattern in the sky. A symbol of Barcelona, the unfinished Sagrada Familia. Shadows at night, further increase the impact of this cathedral. Approaching Place Espanyla from Nacional Palace .

Dubai, Abudabi, UAE

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2014.03.31-04.06 Genki Watanabe + Hu Lin Dubai which becomes a hub in the Middle East. Since 2003 decade, sustained economic development of urban construction at the same time, decoration, lighting, etc also has a very significant change. This time, we investigated the city lights and light of life. View from the Burj Khalifa Dubai is separated by an old town from new town. From the birth of the new urban area in the desert, about the lights of the messy no uniformity, glare is very much also. Is old town which is driven by the local way of life, have a certain order of light in the evolution of the light environment. Too light or too dark in the space is more, the overall light environment in a state of disharmony. In a city there are two completely different forms of development order, and are looking forward to Dubai in future how to plan more mature light environment. The Dubai Mall Dubai’s sunshine time is long, many architectural practice break hot also consider natural lighting. In the Dubai mall every space has a unique Islamic architecture design, Ceiling. Interior lighting and day lighting harmonious blend in together. Day lighting is a good example. Deira Gold Souq Deira Old Souq （Spice Souq） Signboard light in old town

Global Lighting Survey: Sydney, Australia

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Sydney Lighting Survey: How Sydney CBD glows at night 2019.09.19 – 2019.09.21　 Momoko Muraoka + Sunyoung Hwang Sydney, a capital city of New South Wales is famous for its beautiful beaches and iconic Opera House. It makes it to the most populous city of Australia with more than 5.2million population. The climate of Sydney is subtropical with no extreme seasonal differences. Highly saturated clear blue sky, lush greeneries, beautiful waterscape, and iconic Opera House – Sydney is the city that has it all. It is quite a lovely place to be and usually makes it to the top rankings for the most liveable cities in the world. This time, Lighting Detectives flew to Sydney to find out how it lights up at night as a famous tourist destination. The survey focuses on the Sydney CBD (Central Business District) area. When looked down from the Sydney Observatory, the city did not have much of the façade lighting. Many of the buildings were glowing with their interior lights. There were not much of RGB lights nor media facade light except few areas of Darling Harbour and Pitt Street, the shopping district. The shot taken from North Sydney to have an overall view of Sydney CBD with iconic Opera House and Harbour Bridge shows this more clearly. Sydney seemed rather classic with a warm tone of lighting on these iconic features and minimum architectural lights. Interview with the city of Sydney Interview with…

TOKYO : UENO PARK

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Rich in local history and cultural facilities, Ueno Park covers a large area in the middle of Tokyo. Even though located in an urban setting, we anticipated a lighting environment completely different than the lights of downtown. Between the trees and darkness of the park there are patches of Tokyo`s bright night sky, but the hushed silence is isolated from the city`s hustle and bustle. Ueno Park`s quiet presence gently sleeps next to Tokyo`s vibrant downtown. Approaching Ueno Park from the JR train station.　　The large overhang of the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan is brightly illuminated in contrast to the surrounding darkness of the park. A view o f northern Tokyo over the Shinobazu Pond from an elevated Ueno terrace. The bright lights of a vibrant downtown are seen in the distance beyond the dark trees of the park. However, through the darkness a bright, orange, sodium lamp illuminates the Benten Shrine near the pond. Looking towards the water fountain plaza from the Tokyo National Museum. A slightly bright night sky, characteristic of most metropolitan areas, opens over head with a dark belt of trees and tiny dots of light below. Young couples seeking a quiet spot away from the lights, snuggle up together on near benches.

City Night Survey : Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto

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2022.11.10-12　Mari Kubota + Noriko Higashi In July 2020, Hitoyoshi City in Kumamoto Prefecture was devastated by catastrophic flooding caused by heavy rainfall. Since the disaster, the city has made steady efforts toward recovery— efforts in which lighting has played a significant role. To understand how lighting has contributed to the city’s revitalization, we conducted interviews with local stakeholders, including hot spring inn owners and city officials, and followed up with an on-site investigation of the actual lighting projects. From July 3 to 4, 2020, torrential rains caused the Kuma River to overflow, resulting in catastrophic flooding in Hitoyoshi City, Kumamoto Prefecture. Known for its scenic beauty, hot springs, and hospitality centered around local shochu, this tourism-driven city suffered devastating damage—not only from the flooding but also from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to the disaster, a local inn owner launched the Hitoyoshi Hikari no Fukkō Project (Hitoyoshi Light Recovery Project), using light as a tool for recovery. In 2021, Hitoyoshi was selected as a model city for Japan’s Cabinet Office-led Super City (SC) initiative, proposing a future-oriented recovery plan. This plan placed lighting as a key component, aiming to promote both disaster resilience and tourism attraction through thoughtful illumination. This survey included interviews with stakeholders such as hot spring inn owners, city officials, and lighting designers involved in the project, examining how “light” became a central theme in the recovery process and evaluating the impact it has…