Grote Markt | Loomit - Lighting Architecture

Genk

Grote Mark

LOCATION
Genk (BE)

YEAR
2023-2024

CLIENT
City of Genk

LIGHTING DESIGN PROJECT
Loomit

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT / URBAN PLANNERS
Bureau Bas Smets

PHOTOGRAPHER
Benno Van den Bogaert

Genk’s redeveloped centre features a sustainable lighting system combining functional and decorative elements, with amber LEDs and RGB projectors enhancing ambiance, safety, and biodiversity while transforming the Grote Markt’s central square into a vibrant, green public space.

The city centre of Genk is defined by a sequence of 3 interconnected squares: the two larger ones, the Grote Markt & Stadsplein, & the long, narrow Sint-Martinusplein, which links them.

The alteration of the Grote Markt kicked off the city's public squares’ redevelopment. Once a fully paved space, it has been reimagined as a green urban square, offering strolling, relaxing, playing & outdoor dining areas.

The new lighting system, inaugurated end 2024, combines pole-mounted & pendant luminaires, enhancing functionality & ambience: Lighting poles are strategically placed along the square’s perimeter & pathways, with projectors mounted at heights ranging from 3.5 m to 6.7 m to illuminate pedestrian & motorized routes as well as accent features.

At the heart of the square, a playground is lit with DMX controlled RGB projectors, creating slowly shifting colourful light scenarios that add vibrancy to the space. On the northern side, location of the largest cluster of outdoor dining terraces, decorative pendant luminaires with amber-coloured LEDs enhance the pedestrian walkways & dining areas. The custom-designed luminaires project intricate patterns onto the ground, reminiscent of sunlight filtered through tree leaves.

The choice of amber-coloured LEDs is aesthetically pleasing as well as eco-conscious. The spectral composition of this warm-toned light minimizes disruption to nocturnal wildlife, making it a sustainable choice for urban lighting.

The spectral composition of this warm-toned
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