The University of California, Berkeley, School of Law’s new addition is cleverly inserted into the courtyard of their existing building. The entrance is at street level and the rest of the new building occupies four-stories below grade.
A view of the roof garden. Pedestrian-scale illuminated columns with 32W T8 lamps meet the 1 footcandle minimum for the egress path requirements.
In the plaza area adjacent to the new building’s entrance, pole mounted luminaires with 70W T6 metal halide sources coordinate with the spacing of the trees. The stairs use an LED-illuminated handrail. The frosted glass light wells are backlit with accessible dimmable fluorescents.
In the café, 2W LED striplights graze the back terracotta wall. Staggered-spaced 32W T8 lensed fluorescent fixtures are located in the wood ceiling, and glass pendants with a 26W triple-tube compact fluorescent lamp provide a decorative accent to the space.
The order and cash register area of the café.
In the distance learning lecture hall the ceiling and walls are illuminated by 20W LED downlights and 7.6W LED covelights. Recessed 54W T5HO fluorescent wallwashers at the lectern have full range preset dimming. The combination provides 30 footcandles at the work surface.
The front face of the reference desk is lit with 2W LEDs. Decorative pendants with 75W incandescent lamps create an accent feature above, and 26W BT5 square aperture compact fluorescent downlights provide ambient illumination.
The building’s main feature stair is illuminated with a combination of custom amber and white LEDs. With the use of photosensors and programmed presets, the 0.5W LEDs change color and intensityfrom white to warmas the day progresses.
Because the reading room sits below grade and is primarily lit by day with natural light, the designers were mindful of placing fixtures along the perimeter of the space to provide the right balance of natural and electric light.
Reading rooms, located two floors below grade, are made to feel bright and airy with the use of 32W T8 fluorescent cove fixtures, 20W LED downlights and additional illumination from the feature stair. New contemporary-styled carrel lighting complements the refurbished antique carrels.
