5 minute read
Light Fit for a God
from June 2025
Honoring Antiquity with a Modern Design Approach
By Randy Reid
Photography: © Gavriil Papadiotis
The Temple of Poseidon at Sounion, Greece, a 5th-century BC landmark perched dramatically on the Aegean Sea, is both visually iconic and culturally sacred. Lighting such a monument demands more than technical expertise; it requires respect, restraint, and deep artistic sensitivity.
“It’s like illuminating our past, our story as Greeks and our civilization,” shared Nasia Lazou of Eleftheria Deko & Associates The firm received an IALD Award of Merit at LightFair in May for the internationally celebrated project.
Under Eleftheria Deko’s leadership, the design team approached the Temple of Poseidon project with measured confidence and a deep sense of purpose. Eleftheria is no stranger to iconic monuments. Her acclaimed lighting design for the Acropolis of Athens redefined the global standard for illuminating cultural heritage.
The lighting concept began with a decision to differentiate and define each architectural element of the temple using carefully selected color temperatures. Warmer lighting at approximately 2700K was used to illuminate the interior of the temple structure, creating a soft glow that speaks to the sacred intimacy of the space. In contrast, the exteriors of the columns were lit in a cooler tone – around 3600K –bringing out their sculptural form against the night sky. The base of the temple in 3000K was given its own neutral tone, further anchoring the monument and visually separating it from the terrain.
This strategy of nuanced differentiation is subtle to the casual viewer but transformative in effect. The careful interplay of warm and cool light produces a sense of depth and dimensionality that makes the ancient structure feel alive, as though it is quietly breathing against the backdrop of the sea.
The lighting design's success lies not only in its visual outcome. It is equally rooted in the method of execution. According to Nasia, every luminaire was selected and placed with extreme discretion. “We had to be very careful not to harm the temple, as well as avoid any visual nuisance for the daytime visitors” she said.
The fixtures, supplied by Linea Light Group, were mounted on custom-designed bases and hidden within the natural topography. Every single fixture is placed so as not to be visible to visitors, even those in close proximity, maintaining the visual purity of the monument.
This level of discretion required long hours of testing and adjustment, often carried out overnight. The design team worked meticulously, returning to the site again and again to test beam angles, distances, color mixing, and fixture positioning under real conditions.
It wasn’t about filling the site with light. Rather, it was about guiding the light so that the monument itself could speak.
In contrast to the frantic pace and pandemic pressure that accompanied Eleftheria’s earlier Acropolis project, the Temple of Poseidon effort allowed for a more measured process. The design and testing took place over the course of almost two years. That kind of duration is not only a luxury—it’s a necessity when working on an UNESCO-worthy site of this scale and cultural weight.
The project was made possible through the sponsorship of Metlen Energy & Metals, the corporate sponsor that provided financial support for the lighting equipment and installation. Oversight was provided by the area’s archaeological ephorate, part of the Greek Ministry of Culture’s antiquities service.
The lighting design team included Marina Matiatou (PM) and Angelos Konstantakatos (who has since moved on from the firm), working alongside system integrator Dimitris Kapetanellis and chief electrician Orestis Akritidis Together, they delivered a result that feels both timeless and forward-looking. It is a luminous tribute that respects the silence of antiquity while revealing its structure with modern grace.
The IALD judges praised the work for its “highly professional and artistic handling of cultural heritage,” noting the design’s “masterful balance between honoring the monument’s historical significance and addressing contemporary environmental and experiential needs.”
Those needs included sustainability, of course, and the design makes use of energy-efficient LED technology throughout, ensuring minimal impact on both the structure and the surrounding ecology.
Nasia expressed immense pride in the project, not just for the award but for what the lighting represents. It’s not simply about seeing the temple—it’s about feeling its presence. The lighting doesn’t try to reinvent or embellish the monument. Instead, it reveals the form and the spirit of the structure as it has stood for thousands of years, now made visible in the night.
“Illuminating these monuments is also emotional work,” she said. “It connects us to who we are.” And as the sun sets over Cape Sounion, with the Temple of Poseidon now softly glowing against the sky, it’s hard not to feel that connection, too.
