RSL project light for an architectural icon

Exceptional architecture requires individual lighting solutions. RSL specializes in the development and production of custom luminaires for high-profile international projects. The Sankt Augustin-based manufacturer works closely with renowned architects and planners and implements their - often extravagant and extremely demanding - designs.

Inspired by the art of Islam
So too, in the atrium of the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, the capital of the Emirate of Qatar, floats a unique luminaire designed and manufactured by RSL in North Rhine-Westphalia. The iconic museum building, erected on an artificially raised island, and the spectacular ring luminaire were designed by renowned Chinese-American architect I. M. Pei. Before starting the project, Pritzker Prize winner Ieoh Ming Pei had visited Islamic buildings in various countries as part of a study tour for inspiration. In the process, he came across ornamental art and geometric patterns that fascinated him. These influences are clearly reflected in the design of the museum atrium.

Chandelier from Sankt Augustin
Decorative, geometric shapes not only adorn the flooring in the central interior of the Museum of Islamic Art. The imposing ring lamp installed above the staircase, which is also circular, is also adorned with a fine pattern. I. M. Pei wanted a very special chandelier for the atrium of his museum building. "Not one from Vienna, of course," said the architect with a twinkle in his eye. Instead, it was a chandelier from Sankt Augustin. And not a traditional chandelier, but a modern, steel light sculpture with a diameter of twelve meters.

Hair-fine pattern
A two-centimeter-thick, sand-filled steel tube, shaped into a circle, forms the static-constructive inner life of the special light. The outer shell was created from several stainless steel templates in a sandwich construction. The glass-bead blasted surface was laser-signed with the ornamental pattern designed by I. M. Pei, so that the light can shine through. The lines created by the laser are as fine as a hair and have a total length of about three kilometers.

Challenging project
During the planning phase, members of I. M. Pei's team regularly traveled to Sankt Augustin in North Rhine-Westphalia to consult with the executing manufacturer on the implementation of the design. Statics were among the greatest challenges for this ring light, which has around thirty tons of tension at each of its nodes. Temperature fluctuations in the museum and their effects on the metal structure also had to be taken into account. Thanks to their design, lighting and craftsmanship expertise, RSL's custom lighting experts succeeded in building the ornamental chandelier exactly according to the architect's wishes and ideas. sh

For more than half a century, RSL has been taking the impulses of lighting planners, designers & architects from a blank sheet of paper to application. What results are unique & site-specific lighting instruments for individual lighting concepts. Each result stands for value work "made in Sankt Augustin".

Australian Tree Fern Growing Guide