6 minute read
New Lighting in New Haven
How CBB Transformed Yale’s Peabody Museum
By Randy Reid
Photo credit: Peter Aaron/OTTO
The recent renovation of the Peabody Museum at Yale, with architectural design by Centerbrook Architects and lighting design spearheaded by Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design (CBB), has brought the museum into the 21st century. The redesign aimed to revitalize the institution, enhance visitor experience, and make the spaces feel lighter, brighter and more connected to daylight and the outdoors. Through innovative design, CBB not only modernized the lighting but also aligned it with the museum's sustainability and conservation goals.
Lighting Philosophy and Architectural Alignment
One of the central goals of the renovation was to connect the museum’s interior to the outside world, a vision embraced by the architectural team. This was achieved by revealing previously closed windows, adding a new skylit central gallery, and incorporating a laylight that simulates daylighting. This strategy not only flooded the museum with natural light but also created a more open and inviting atmosphere. The lighting design complemented this vision by integrating the lighting into the architecture where possible, allowing the focus to remain on the museum’s exhibits and spaces.
Addressing Challenges in the Renovation
A particular challenge arose from the desire to connect the museum to the outdoors, creating the need to protect light-sensitive objects. Through careful daylight analysis through 3D AutoCad models imported into AGi photometric software, CBB provided valuable information to the architects and museum curators that helped them place the artifacts safely and develop window shading. This work ensured that the exhibits were protected from damage caused by exposure to excessive natural light.
Another challenge was accessibility for maintenance. Limited access points in the Great Hall required creative problem-solving to ensure that lighting systems could be easily maintained without damaging the precious exhibits.
Highlights of Specific Lighting Features
ENTRY DESK
The museum's entrance, with its vaulted ceiling, posed a particular design challenge. The old lighting system relied on inefficient sconces and unsightly surface-mounted fixtures with visible conduits. The architects planned for a new central desk, and CBB suggested creating a structure that could incorporate all the lighting for the room.
This innovative solution kept the walls clean and created a striking lighting effect. A ring of continuous, diffuse light sources from Starfire Lighting at the top of the desk uplights the ceiling, while another ring of downlighting illuminates the counters and surrounding floor. Additionally, a custom radial louver assembly is installed over the downlight ring to control glare, and backlit onyx panels provide soft, even light around visitors. The desk also features twelve Delta Light adjustable accent lights to illuminate the suspended exhibit and further highlight the ceiling.
GREAT HALL
The Great Hall presented its own set of challenges, especially with the mural that extends above the edge of the new central ceiling. Achieving uniform lighting for such a large vertical surface with a recessed ceiling wall washer alone was difficult, as recessed LED wall washers tend to leave a dark band at the top of the wall.
To resolve this, CBBLD installed linear uplight on the edge of the ceiling recess, reflecting light off the ceiling and back onto the mural. Together, these two lighting elements created a soft glow that evenly illuminates the mural from top to bottom. CBB selected two different types of equipment from A-Light that used the same LED boards to ensure color consistency. In addition, these sources were tunable-white to allow for the selection of a color temperature to make the mural look its best.
The Great Hall also features a dynamic lighting controlled via DMX through an ETC system, which allows the museum to adjust the white color temperature and introduce colored lighting for special events. This flexible system provides the museum with a range of lighting scenes, enhancing both the regular exhibits and any special functions hosted in the space.
LAYLIGHT SYSTEM
One of the most complex lighting elements in the renovation was the laylight system. CBB faced the challenge of lighting long laylight bays from one end, as the museum stipulated that no access would be permitted above the display platforms. Through extensive computer modeling and mock-ups, the team achieved uniform lighting across the entire laylight surface using carefully positioned Color Kinetics linear fixtures with varying beam spreads. The result is a visually seamless ceiling that enhances the overall ambiance of the Great Hall.
Integration with the Architecture
Where possible, lighting was carefully integrated into the architectural features, particularly in the new Central Gallery. This space, formed by infilling a courtyard, required a variety of flexible lighting sources. To maintain the clean, open feel of the gallery’s cathedral-like ceiling, CBB concealed LSI tracks and fixtures within slots that were detailed into the perimeter edges and center spine of the wood ceiling, providing ample light for the gallery and exhibits.
Sustainability and Energy Efficiency
Sustainability played a crucial role in the lighting design. The renovation achieved LEED Gold certification, aiming for a 50% reduction in energy consumption compared to the original building.
The use of energy-efficient lighting was a key to reaching that goal. The museum replaced its outdated incandescent fixtures with LED solutions, such as the LED track lights for exhibits. These LED systems were designed for energy efficiency, employing current limiters on the track to cap energy usage, and for ease of use. This approach helped the museum significantly reduce its energy footprint while enhancing the quality of light for the exhibits.
User Experience and Flexibility
The renovation of the Peabody Museum not only refreshed the exhibits but also expanded the museum's capacity to host special events. The flexible lighting system, with its tunable white and RGBW capabilities, allows the museum to adapt the atmosphere of spaces like the Great Hall and the Central Gallery for various functions. The use of LSI track lighting with Xicato Bluetooth-controlled LED modules provides even more customization, as each fixture can be individually controlled to create the desired effect for any occasion.
The lighting renovation of the Peabody Museum at Yale, executed by Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design, exemplifies a harmonious blend of architectural lighting design, sustainability, and cutting-edge technology. Their innovative approach and solutions have transformed the museum into a bright, modern space that respects its historical legacy while looking firmly to the future.
