Leading Architecture Firm Finds a New Niche

Sep 10, 2020
Leading Architecture Firm Finds a New Niche
Photo: Rafael Gamo

Branching out beyond its traditional role, architect Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) has teamed with Italian lighting designer Neri to create Nebula, an outdoor urban lighting collection for city streets, squares and parks. “Our team of architects, lighting designers and fabricators sought to design a collection of outdoor lights that meet the demands of almost any design brief from a performance and aesthetic perspective,” says Carlos Madrid, who led the project on behalf of SOM. “While the family of lights appears as a finite system, it is quite malleable, similar to theatrical lighting, where each light source is independent and lights can be added, removed, focused in certain directions or at specific objects.”

The lights come in several scales, adding a modern twist to historical settings while blending into contemporary locations. Three primary elements—an illuminating bollard, path light and full height lighting system—are designed to seamlessly integrate a variety of accessories, from banner holders and planters to power sources.