CharterSills Architectural Lighting Design

Designing For Longevity

In an industry often focused on what's new, one of the best measures of a lighting design is how well it performs years after the project completion. As lighting designers, we're not just designing for opening day. We're designing for longevity.

When working on the Gratz Center in Chicago with Gensler which was completed in 2012, many of the lighting decisions were driven by long-term performance as much as aesthetics. Reliable fixture selection, thoughtful placement, maintainability, and a restrained approach to lighting effects all contribute to a design that can continue to serve the space well over time.

Technology will evolve, design trends will shift, and expectations will change. But projects that prioritize visual comfort, applicable light levels, and architectural integration tend to age far more gracefully than those built around temporary trends.

Good lighting design should still feel intentional years later. The goal isn't to create something that captures attention for a moment, but something that continues to support the architecture and the people using the space long after the ribbon cutting.

What design decisions do you think contribute most to a project's longevity?

Congratulations to the entire team on the launch of Undergraduate by Hilton.

CharterSills was proud to contribute the lighting design for this new hospitality concept, helping create environments that support the character, comfort, and experience at the heart of the brand.

Projects like this are a reminder of the role lighting plays in shaping memorable guest experiences. We are grateful to have collaborated with such a talented team and look forward to seeing Undergraduate by Hilton grow in communities across the country.

Excited to see this West Loop hospitality project featured by Crain’s Chicago Business.

CharterSills joined the project team to support the lighting design process through analysis and lighting calculations, helping verify light levels throughout the space. In collaboration with ownership, we also worked on enhancements to select lighting elements to further support the atmosphere and overall experience.

We are grateful to have contributed as part of a larger collaborative effort bringing this project to life.

Credits:
Design Architect:Knauer Associates
Architecture of Record:Antunovich Associates
Rendering courtesy of: Gibsons and Knauer Incorporated

The realm of design and architecture media is often centered around the finished product, while much of the valuable knowledge behind the process remains in the background. In the lighting industry especially, there are countless techniques, creative approaches, problem-solving methods, and lessons learned that rarely reach a wider audience, despite how valuable they could be to aspiring designers and creatives.

That is part of why CharterSills has started creating YouTube videos focused on our projects, processes, and techniques. Like any creative community, having spaces for inspiration, education, and open discussion helps people grow by creating opportunities to share ideas, challenges, and even mistakes. There are so many talented designers and thoughtful approaches within the industry that would otherwise remain unseen without platforms that encourage conversation and knowledge sharing.

Not every discussion around lighting design needs to happen in a formal presentation or at a conference. Sometimes simply talking through a project, explaining a creative decision, or sharing a technique can help someone else learn, improve, or see things from a different perspective.

We’re hoping to create more of that kind of collaborative and approachable space online, one centered around sharing knowledge and contributing to the broader lighting community.

Make sure to check out the YT channel:

Check out our new video where CharterSills designers revisit some of our past lighting projects and share their insights.💡

We take a closer look at the decisions behind each project, what worked, what we would refine, and how our approach to lighting design has evolved.

Video Link: https://youtu.be/tdu3VfNwCic

CharterSills has been reflecting on some of the outstanding projects we have collaborated on over the years.

Take a look at the Kohler Co. Creative Communication Headquarters in Kohler, designed by Gensler.

For this project, our role was to develop a lighting strategy that supports both the architectural vision and the evolving needs of the workspace. Working closely with the design team, we created a layered lighting approach that balances ambient, task, and accent lighting to improve usability while maintaining a clean and cohesive feel. Each decision was made to support the architecture rather than competing with it.

Projects like this reflect what we aim to bring to every collaboration. Lighting that not only enhances how a space looks, but also how it functions over time.

We’re looking for lighting design projects to feature in an upcoming video!

If you have a lighting project whether it’s architectural, interior, or experimental, send it our way.

We’ll be selecting submissions to review, break down, and discuss in detail, highlighting what works well and offering our insights.

Submit your projects via DM or email: [email protected]

Stay tuned!

1 day to go.

Tomorrow, we share something new.

We’re excited to finally give a closer look into what goes into our work.

Stay tuned.

Project Imaged: Northern Trust | Chicago, Illinois | Architect: HED