Gestalt Principles in Outdoor Lighting
Updated: Apr 26
You probably don't think of psychology when you think of outdoor lighting, do you? Believe it or not, psychology plays an important part when it comes to processing lighting and how we respond to it, especially when it comes to outdoor lighting. But even if you've dabbled within the science of psychology, you may be unaware of the Gestalt Principles. Principles that can be discovered in a variety of fields and industries, the Gestalt Principles are simply laws of human perception and how humans recognize patterns, complex images, and perceive objects. These principles are studied in web design, graphic design, and, yes, even outdoor lighting.
There is an assortment of principles and ideas that go into designing from a Gestalt perspective. When it comes to understanding the Gestalt principles, you will further your knowledge of how to gain people's business and attract them to your product or service. In this case, learning about the Gestalt principles will help you decide what kind of outdoor lighting you want for your home's exterior. Here are a few of the Gestalt principles.
Closure
Everyone likes closure. Whether it be as something as big as understanding why a relationship failed or something as small as filling out a connect-the-dots puzzle, everyone needs some sort of closure within their lives.
It's why our hearts are broken when our favorite TV show is canceled before a final season or why we cry whenever a film ends too abruptly. The Gestalt principle of closure simply states that we as human beings prefer whole complete shapes. You can apply this principle to outdoor lighting by making the brightness of your outdoor lights full and complete without leaving any glaring patches of darkness.
Proximity
Also known as emergence, the proximity Gestalt principle is a law that states we tend to group together objects and elements together in a closed group to make them appear as one significant, unified element.
Think about a bag of M & M's or a big barrel of theatre popcorn. Even though we can see that these bags or barrels are made up of just smaller pieces, we consider them to be one complete object. This is the same principle when it comes to grouping our outdoor lights together. Think about string lights, for example. They are simply a series of lights hanged together by one string. Even though there are multiple lights at use, we still consider it to be one object through the source of string lighting.
Similarity
similarity is just as it sounds. It is simply putting together similar elements and grouping them together. When it comes to outdoor lighting, this would be keeping all the floodlights
together in one group, your permanent string lighting in another, and so on and so forth. This gives your outdoor lighting a more versatile and distinctive look while also achieving a specific style of lighting for your home.
As the premier outdoor lighting designers in metro Atlanta we use these principles and more to custom craft the perfect design that truly fits your home. If you're interested in learning more about our design principles or would like us to handle your outdoor lighting design click 'get started' below.