Up Close with Maida Hot

One of the first projects I worked on with Fulcrum Consulting when I came to London was the Elizabeth Fry Building at the University of East Anglia. It was very much ahead of its time and it was hailed as the UK’s best performing building in terms of low energy. That was more than 30 years ago.

Since then the whole movement died off in a way. I just think that we could have done so much more [with sustainability], so much sooner. The tools were there to do that but nobody was really pushed to do it.

We worked closely with the architects and blurred the boundaries between the engineering and the architecture. It was great training for a career in lighting consultancy as I learned about all the other services in a building.

One thing that I found throughout my practise in lighting is that design criteria in terms of the light levels and the tables haven’t really moved on much.

All the research that has been done throughout the years has been quite stagnating. I think we need to do some proper research. We need to question the light levels for certain users. Do they need to be what they are?

I think we need to reappraise it because the visual environment is so different from what it used to be. For instance, it’s extraordinary how, when you give people real power over their lighting, they work in darkness.

Lighting design is essentially about revealing everything you want to see and directing you through the space.

But to create a successful outcome, understanding the team members' different disciplines is crucial.

The challenge, especially for younger staff, is about how you communicate your ideas to everybody else. Not just in a drawing, but how do you present it so people actually understand it.

It’s about being confident enough to have that open discussion in a wider team, understand where they're coming from and get in a good place.

It’s about talking with honesty and a vulnerability instead of ‘we are the lighting gods who have come down from the mountain with this design’.

if you’re insular, you never get what you want and you can make enemies.

You need to still have friends at the end of the project and people still want to work with you.

For example, if the architects explain to us what's precious for them, what's really a key for their design, what they won’t give up on and what they can, then you can also say, this is a key for our design. This is what we can't give up on.

You then end up with a session that works for both of you and perhaps opens up some fresh ideas.

It’s easy to get stuck in a bubble of lighting design. But when you engage with architects, engineers, structural engineers, that process can enrich your designs as well.

It also makes commercial sense as it brings repeat business. People like to work with particular teams and particular people and dynamics of a company or the approach.

I would say to young designers, look at every opportunity to gain knowledge. Look at new buildings and old buildings. There's so much inspiration everywhere. Don’t see it as a chore, but part of you. Just looking everywhere, and make a mental note or take a photograph or whatever.

But probably the most important thing is that lighting design is not just a profession, it's a passion.