Revitalizing Trinity Church

A Journey of Illumination

By Randy Reid

In the heart of the Wall Street neighborhood stands Trinity Church, a historic landmark steeped in rich heritage. Melanie Freundlich of Melanie Freundlich Lighting Design led the charge in transforming this iconic place of worship. She was assisted by Senior Designer Michael Peace. I met Melanie at Trinity when I was in town for the IESNYC Lumen Awards. This job won an Award of Merit.

My conversation with Melanie unveiled the captivating story behind the church's revitalization, highlighting the challenges faced, successful solutions, and innovative lighting techniques employed throughout the project.

Ten years ago, MBB Architects, a long-standing client, approached Melanie with a proposal to renovate and rejuvenate Trinity Church. The first master plan was shelved, but a new one was developed when church leadership changed, and it received widespread approval, setting the project in motion.

Melanie described the previous lighting design for the church's nave, which consisted of Source Four fixtures strategically positioned within the vaulted ceiling. These fixtures, aimed through large apertures, created huge glare and many dark spots. Recognizing the need for a complete reimagining of the entire church lighting, Melanie embarked on a journey to develop a transformative design.

She shared her initial concept, envisioning use of discrete modern pendants to illuminate the nave. However, considering the church's traditional values, this proposal didn't align with the client's vision. She crafted a second plan.

PENDANTS

Melanie collaborated with Rambusch Lighting to custom design a pendant lighting solution that addressed multiple needs. Taking inspiration from the windows in the nave, the shape and housing of the pendants mirrored the gothic elements found throughout the church ensuring harmony with the historic architectural elements.

Custom-designed pendants from Rambusch Lighting take inspiration from the windows in the nave.

Photo credit: Christopher Payne/Esto, Colin Winterbottom

While the pendants maintained a traditional gothic appearance from the outside, their design concealed a multitude of modern capabilities. Beyond their radiant glow, these fixtures harnessed the power of strong uplighting to accentuate the grandeur of the church's majestic ceilings. Simultaneously, they provided gentle downlighting to illuminate the pews, ensuring a comfortable ambiance. The visually striking lantern design added an extra layer of aesthetic allure, elevating the overall visual appeal of the space. Melanie explained that each pendant has four or five channels allowing separate controls of each lighting application.

The pendants provide both uplighting and dowlighting to the nave.

Photo credit: Christopher Payne/Esto, Colin Winterbottom

The pendants are suspended from electric winches, allowing them to be easily raised and lowered as needed. This flexibility allows for adjustments in height for special events as well as ease of maintenance.

To ensure the design met the church's vision, multiple iterations were created using cardboard mock-ups. These mock-ups were hung on pulleys in the nave, enabling the vestry and clergy to evaluate the design and provide valuable feedback. It was crucial to strike a balance between creating a visually stunning fixture without interfering with views of the church and liturgical elements.

The main pendant design in the nave served as the foundation for smaller lanterns installed in the side aisles. Prior to the restoration, neither the nave nor the side aisle had any pendant lighting. By incorporating lighting in these areas, the ambiance was enriched, allowing for reading and a sense of inclusion within the overall church environment, without the harsh glare from the previous Source Four luminaires.

Smaller pendants in the side aisles provide additional light.

Photo credit: Christopher Payne/Esto, Colin Winterbottom

While the main focus was on the pendants and lanterns, recessed LED downlights were strategically placed in the ceiling to highlight specific architectural features such as the organ pipes. Care was taken to minimize the use of downlights, allowing the attention to remain on the captivating ceiling and encouraging worshippers to look upward. Adjustable recessed LED downlights were provided by Rambusch to illuminate the chancel, the center professional aisle, and other architectural details in the space. These fixtures, meticulously integrated into the overall design, provided precise lighting to enhance the visual impact of key areas within the church.

The collaboration between Melanie, the architects, and Rambusch resulted in fixtures that not only met the lighting requirements of Trinity Church but also paid homage to its historic grandeur. The fixtures, designed by MFLD, brought to life through Rambusch's shop drawings, blended tradition and modernity seamlessly.

Throughout the project, Melanie worked closely with Don Guyton of APF (Auerbach Pollock Friedlander) Theater Consultants on various aspects including broadcast lighting and a new control system. The project team seamlessly provided extensive rewiring and the integration of ETC zero to 10-volt architectural lighting controls.

Don Guyton, a consultant specializing in broadcast lighting, played a vital role in addressing the church's needs for broadcasting services to a wide virtual audience. He introduced theatrical LED and quartz fixtures into a slot in the ceiling, specifically for broadcast purposes. Additionally, Don spearheaded the replacement of the control system. Working closely with the broadcast staff, the new ETC control system was designed to meet both the unique broadcast and architectural requirements of the church, which vary, thus the need to separately control the uplight and downlights in the pendants.

The remarkable transformation of the church's lighting system significantly impacted its overall ambiance and functionality. The meticulously designed pendants, housing the necessary drivers and controls, brought a new level of luminosity to the nave. The restoration project extended beyond the lighting, encompassing architectural updates and rejuvenation of the entire interior, including ancillary rooms, wings, and the sacristy.

There were other important fixtures and manufacturers involved in the lighting redesign. One notable fixture was the curved LED linear fixtures used to light up the golden statuary in the niches behind the altar. The fixtures are mounted in the perimeter of the coves and illuminate the gilt-covered back wall. The uplighting behind the reredos, the ornamental screen or backdrop behind the altar, was lit with Boca Lighting.

In the vestibule, specifically the middle vestibule known as the narthex, B-K Lighting's fixtures were used. These cylindrical fixtures had both uplight and downlight capabilities and were chosen to blend seamlessly into the space. Similarly, underneath the choir loft, the same fixtures were used to model the original restored carved wood.

Cylindrical fixtures from B-K Lighting provide both uplight and downlight to the narthex.

Photo credit: Christopher Payne/Esto, Colin Winterbottom

Lighting Services Inc spotlights were employed to light monuments or other memorial elements along the nave walls. These spotlights functioned like track heads and were mounted on plates integrated into the ceiling. In addition, higher wattage LSI fixtures provided general illumination in the Chapel of the Saints.

Throughout the nave, all of the direct lighting that illuminates the congregation is 2700K; everything else is 3000K. Most functions that the church hosts are during the day and during the mock up process, 3000K looked the best.

The meticulous restoration work conducted in the church encompassed not only the lighting but also the overall building fabric. Years were spent repairing the stone, marble, and plaster elements. All the stained-glass windows were taken out and either restored or replaced, ensuring they were faithful to the original design.

THE STAINED-GLASS WINDOW

Melanie was confronted with a peculiar challenge – a new stained-glass window at the church's entry that was replacing a simple 1920s window which could be viewed from the nave. Trinity Church sought the expertise of renowned English artist Tom Denny to create a new window of extraordinary proportions – 30 feet tall by 20 feet wide, adorned with delicate tracery. As the restoration unfolded, the church's interior underwent significant transformations, including the installation of three new organs and the creation of a back wall that obscured the stained-glass window from view within the church. Overcoming the obstacle of the concealed stained-glass window, Melanie proposed a groundbreaking solution – a colossal light box measuring 30 feet tall by 20 feet wide. Working closely with Tom Denny, intricate mockups were created to determine the most effective approach utilizing RGBW-addressable panels provided by Nanometer Lighting.

30-feet tall and 20-feet wide, the new stained-glass window by Tom Denny is truly awe-inspiring.

Photo credit: Christopher Payne/Esto, Colin Winterbottom

To ensure the stained-glass window emanated a mesmerizing glow, Melanie and her team embarked on an extensive search for high-output light boxes. The selection process aimed to find fixtures capable of showcasing the stained glass' intricate details while harmonizing with the overall ambiance of the church. The final design involved a vertical grid of light boxes mounted two feet behind the stained-glass panels. Each light box, powered by Nanometer's proprietary control system, boasted 32 channels of control, offering a dynamic range of colors and intensities. The culmination of their efforts resulted in a remarkable collaboration between artistic vision and technical prowess.

To achieve a cohesive lighting experience throughout the church, ERCO floodlights were strategically placed, casting a consistent color palette across the sandstone surfaces of the exterior of the church. These floodlights, mounted to 25-foot poles, gracefully accentuated the church's architectural elements, including a majestic clock and vertical features. Additionally, ERCO recessed burial lights are discreetly installed on the bluestone terrace, further enhancing the lower elevations of the building.

SACRED SPACE

Melanie Freundlich's extraordinary career as a lighting designer has taken her on a unique path through a wide range of houses of worship. Melanie has found herself designing lighting solutions for many churches, synagogues, and other sacred places, a venture that has both surprised and inspired her.

Her early professional years were marked by her tenure at Fisher Marantz Stone, where she honed her skills and nurtured her passion for architectural lighting design. It was during this time that she began exploring the intricacies of illuminating sacred spaces, laying the foundation for her future ventures into the realm of churches.

A notable milestone in Melanie's journey was her involvement in the restoration of the historic Fordham Chapel, an undertaking that predates her work at Trinity Church. Melanie embraced the opportunity to design lanterns for a place of Christian worship, approaching the project with sensitivity and respect for the chapel's rich heritage. The success of this early endeavor paved the way for her continued forays into the realm of houses of worship.

Trinity Church, the crown jewel of Melanie's portfolio, stands as a testament to her ability to bridge traditions and create awe-inspiring lighting designs for both historic and modern places of worship. The project, which spanned numerous years, allowed Melanie to fully immerse herself in the challenges and triumphs of illuminating such a historic and sacred space.

Melanie sees her experience with this range of religious buildings as a testament to the universality of lighting design. She believes that light has the power to transcend religious boundaries, creating a sense of reverence and spirituality that resonates with people of all faiths. Her upbringing instilled in her a deep appreciation for the power of light to inspire and uplift, regardless of religious affiliation.

As our conversation drew to a close, Melanie reflected on the rewarding nature of the project. The restored Trinity Church now stands as a testament to the power of collaboration, thoughtful design, and a shared commitment to transforming sacred spaces into awe-inspiring environments. The design offers an unwavering dedication to preserving history, while her embrace of innovation shines through in her meticulous attention to detail.

In her acceptance speech, Melanie stated, “It shows that a small firm can do a very big project.”

Yes it does! ■

FIXTURE SCHEDULE

Rambusch Lighting

Lighting Services, Inc.

Boca Lighting and Controls

Nanometer

ETC Controls

ERCO

B-K Lighting (with Nichia)

Crenshaw Lighting

LED Linear