What can we learn from Mexico, Luca Salas?

Architects: Luca Salas Bassani Antivari, LSBA

13.06.2019

What can we learn from Mexico, Luca Salas?

Architects: Luca Salas Bassani Antivari, LSBA

13.06.2019

13.06.2019

Portrait Luca Salas
© LSBA

1. Studio LSBA in San Miguel de Chapultepec 2. Bar Auditorio Nacional CDMX 3.-4. Restaurant Pujol in CDMX in collaboration with the architects Javier Sanchez & Micaela Bernardi 5.-7. Exposition «Guía de la luz natural en la Ciudad de México» © LSBA

Luca Salas Bassani Antivari is an architect and lighting designer. After studying architecture at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam, he participated in a workshop of the light planner Ulrike Brandi at the Domaine De Boisbuchet in northern France. His fascination for the world of light was awakened and he made lighting design his profession. After several years in Amsterdam, Hamburg and Milan he founded his office in 2012 in Milan and then in 2014 in his hometown of Mexico City.

 

In the conversation, Luca talks about how he came to lighting design, about the misunderstanding of his profession and how he works with architects today. Intuition plays an important role for Luca as well as lighting technology. By playing with light sensations and the staging of atmospheres he awakens memories and emotions and strives to surprise. In order to put the spaces in the “right light”, the dialogue with the architects is essential. The discourse on the lighting concept is done on the basis of technical drawings, sketches, renderings and texts. Then the exact lighting technology is defined and verified with the aid of prototypes together with the customer. Luca works as light expert on restaurant, hotel and residential projects. He also designs lighting installations for museums and galleries. Architects such as Alberto Kalach, Ambrosi Etchegaray, Frida Escobedo, Max von Werz, Lanza Atelier and Mauricio Rocha have already given the light design of their projects into the hands of Luca.

 

The conversation took place with Luca in the studio in the district of San Miguel de Chapultepec in CDMX. It was a wonderful conversation in which you can clearly hear his fascination for the light and his enthusiasm for his job.

 

«editing visually a space»  «by applying light you are applying the corrosion of a space»  «you are applying the element of architecture that is time»  «you have to dance with the architect»

 

Portrait Luca Salas © LSBA

 

In the second part of the interview Luca Salas answers the question “what can we learn from Mexico?”. His first answer is a general wisdom concerning the personal attitude of each person. Relating to Mexico, he tells of his personal learning experience through a theoretical study of natural light in Mexico City. The result is the exhibition “Guía de la luz natural en la Ciudad de México” with financial support from the state program “Jóvenes Creadores”. After analyzing light intensity, direction of light and color temperature for a long time, Luca created twelve exhibits that can soon be used directly on building sites to study the light on site.

 

«what I have learned from Mexico is how to create your own way of doing things»

 

Further links:
– Luca’s homepage: http://lucasalas.com/projects/
– The instagram mentioned in the interview: https://www.instagram.com/lucasalasbassaniantivari/

Luca was awarded the “Master Lighting” prize at Expo Lighting America in 2018. The video for this in Spanish: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftXNWKW0w4Y