“Introducing Chromatic Light Pollution” is a research paper that introduces the concept and definition of chromatic light pollution (by Stylianos Axiotakis, original text in English) and was presented at the final of the Young Lighter of the Year 2011 competition of the Society of Light and Lighting. The text below is a translated excerpt.
In recent years, lighting professionals have been using the term “colour pollution” to describe an emerging phenomenon. The term is used loosely to describe the use of coloured lighting elements in a way that is out of keeping with the surrounding environment. However, it does not refer only to lighting, but more generally to the inappropriate use of colour elements in the built environment.
In short, the term “colour pollution” is inaccurate when applied to artificial lighting and needs clarification.
This paper reviews the lighting issues associated with colour pollution and introduces the term “chromatic light pollution“. It surveys phenomena such as “visual noise” (visual pollution), light pollution and colour pollution, and clarifies how they differ.
As concern grows over the excessive use of coloured artificial light, robust definitions are needed to describe lighting installations and their undesirable effects. The term chromatic light pollution is therefore offered as a starting point for the process of definition and for providing guidance on the subject.
So what is “chromatic light pollution” and how does it relate to people?
The human visual field is complex, and many factors can affect human perception. Light pollution, for example, is related to the intensity of light and its distribution in the visual field. Colour pollution is related to colour and its distribution. Chromatic light pollution, however, is a more complex issue that involves more factors: colour, light intensity, distribution, and continuous changes in all of these, in the case of dynamic visual fields.
Although chromatic light pollution is linked to aesthetics, it is above all a matter of personal perception. Unlike other types of pollution, which have obvious, measurable physical effects, chromatic light pollution adapts to individual perception and carries a different weight for each person.
This is the key difference between the idea of chromatic light pollution and the concepts of light pollution or colour pollution. Human perception is tied to the idea of chromatic light pollution through Peter Boyce‘s concept of visual disturbance, that is, the ability or inability to extract information from the visual field.
Stylianos Axiotakis
Architect Engineer NTUA – Lighting Designer MSc UCL
To see the full research and the definition of chromatic light pollution: http://stylianosportfolio.blogspot.com/2010/12/introducing-chromatic-light-pollution.html
