CharterSills Architectural Lighting Design

Designing For Longevity

In an industry often focused on what's new, one of the best measures of a lighting design is how well it performs years after the project completion. As lighting designers, we're not just designing for opening day. We're designing for longevity.

When working on the Gratz Center in Chicago with Gensler which was completed in 2012, many of the lighting decisions were driven by long-term performance as much as aesthetics. Reliable fixture selection, thoughtful placement, maintainability, and a restrained approach to lighting effects all contribute to a design that can continue to serve the space well over time.

Technology will evolve, design trends will shift, and expectations will change. But projects that prioritize visual comfort, applicable light levels, and architectural integration tend to age far more gracefully than those built around temporary trends.

Good lighting design should still feel intentional years later. The goal isn't to create something that captures attention for a moment, but something that continues to support the architecture and the people using the space long after the ribbon cutting.

What design decisions do you think contribute most to a project's longevity?

Excited to see this West Loop hospitality project featured by Crain’s Chicago Business.

CharterSills joined the project team to support the lighting design process through analysis and lighting calculations, helping verify light levels throughout the space. In collaboration with ownership, we also worked on enhancements to select lighting elements to further support the atmosphere and overall experience.

We are grateful to have contributed as part of a larger collaborative effort bringing this project to life.

Credits:
Design Architect:Knauer Associates
Architecture of Record:Antunovich Associates
Rendering courtesy of: Gibsons and Knauer Incorporated

CharterSills has been reflecting on some of the outstanding projects we have collaborated on over the years.

Take a look at the Kohler Co. Creative Communication Headquarters in Kohler, designed by Gensler.

For this project, our role was to develop a lighting strategy that supports both the architectural vision and the evolving needs of the workspace. Working closely with the design team, we created a layered lighting approach that balances ambient, task, and accent lighting to improve usability while maintaining a clean and cohesive feel. Each decision was made to support the architecture rather than competing with it.

Projects like this reflect what we aim to bring to every collaboration. Lighting that not only enhances how a space looks, but also how it functions over time.