In Praise of Shadows A Book by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki & Thomas J. Harper www.goodreads.com Things that shine and glitterA naked bulbThe Japanese toiletEmpty dreamsMost important of all are the pauses+9 More 125 Best Architecture BooksDaylight should not tyrannize architectureDeep shadows and darkness are essentialLights and lampsThe gentle light of shoji screens zendarknesslightmaterialmaking
135. Tapestry of Light and Dark Problem In a building with uniform light level, there are few “places” which function as effective settings for human events. This happens because, to a large extent, the places which make effective settings are defined by light. Solution Create alternating areas of light and dark throughout the building, in such a way that people naturally walk toward the light, whenever they are going to important places: seats, entrances, stairs, passages, places of special beauty, and make other areas darker, to increase the contrast. Christopher Alexander, Murray Silverstein & Sara Ishikawa, A Pattern Language Einmal Ist Keinmal darknesslight