Daylighting museums – a case study in Lisbon

ABSTRACT: In Portugal, daylighting solutions in Museums have been frequently put aside on behalf of all-artificial lighting solutions, simpler to apply. However, being daylight one of the key factors in environmental comfort for users in public spaces, such as in museums, the architect’s role is fundamental to select and implement effective and integrated daylighting systems. The knowledge of daylighting properties in winter and summer, specifically in the Lisbon area, is the starting point for the application of daylighting solutions that, on the one hand, illuminate the museum spaces effectively, without damaging museum objects, and on the other hand, avoid discomfort situations. This paper presents a summary of a field study carried out in a sample of 20 museums representative of museological spaces in the Lisbon area, focusing on evaluating the advantages of daylighting applications in Museums, in order to establish a set of daylighting design strategies for those spaces