Light and darkness. Two completely opposite phenomena. Light stands for the truth which allows to learn. The path to cognition is a path of conversion, of returning from darkness to light. The light of reason, knowledge, which does not warm up, allows to learn about the world, people; it does not, however, bring love, it does not develop spiritually. In this paper it is associated with the symbol of life, it constitutes a synthesis of positive values, particularly important for the young generation. Night, darkness can also serve as a symbolic image of the actual existence in the world, which only too often has little in common with one’s dreams.
The starting point for this paper are positive values; light is a symbol of hope, joy, happiness, optimism. Confrontation of youthful zeal with cold-hearted world deprives of illusions, sometimes even of dreams. Our reality is often grey, full of selfish people, consumerist lifestyle directed towards worldly possessions. Man is forced to exist in the world of objects, the light of which is not perfect. Hence man’s need to constantly search for the source of the utmost light. An element which is quite natural and results from man’s inherent needs, which is also man’s salvation, is recovering the spiritual sense of hearing and seeing – man’s internal, spiritual development. Reaching the utmost good constitutes the fulfilment of man’s spiritual potential.

The relationship between the interior of the building and its outer space is now the basic component in architectural design as a holistic integrated spatial solution. The opening of the building to the context of the immediate surroundings serves to build a visual expression, attractive aesthetics of the building and its artistic expression, but also the creation of interior spatial impressions connected with the light. All compositional and plastic effects and landscape effects are achieved through the use of transparent partitions, the conscious use of light in the building. Another aspect of such solutions is the possibility of building a universal space, where the boundaries between the interior and exterior of the designed object are blurred. Not without significance here is the use of appropriate materials that emphasise the unity of the connection and the partition is only the formal closure of the space. This is particularly important in the design of relationships landscape – interior, which outside the planned view is given a natural lighting. The ability to use transparent walls in architecture is due to the use of state-of-the-art technology that allows large areas of glazed glass to be introduced without limitation. Transparency can then act on both sides of the barrier, outside and inside the object.

The article presents the role and meaning of winter gardens in the process of shaping the contemporary residential architecture, as well as their contemporary concepts accompanying residential architecture along with their aesthetics and technological solutions against the background of the evolution of their architectural form over centuries. The renaissance of winter garden was particularly vivid in recent decades, with the development of pro-eco and sustainable architecture.

The article discusses the problems of designing an artificial illumination from an architectural point of view, in connection with the requirements of lighting and electrical engineering. A set of theoretical aspects of this issue, which may influence the design of architectural lighting projects, is presented, taking into account the principles of composition and functionality of architecture. The interaction of artificial lighting has also been discussed for the perception of the architectural space by the user.

The architectural forms of buildings erected in cities of Southern and Western Europe are much influenced by climatic conditions. Protection against excessive exposition to solar radiation comprises – without limitations – a specific shape of the building, as well as introduction of blinds and shutters limiting the influx of light. Climatic conditions pertain not only to architecture itself; they also have their effect on the way in which urban public spaces are utilised. All sorts of contemporary shadowing structures and structures filtering sunbeams occur on squares and streets of many cities. Thanks to their characteristic form, and sometimes also thanks to their scale, they contribute to the creation of unique and recognisable places. This paper presents and analyses selected projects of the kind from Italian and Spanish cities. On the basis of the analysis the Author shall propose a typology of the structures and their relations with the surrounding space.

The article analyses the role of daylight, its influence on shaping and reception of architecture and interior of a temple. Since the earliest days, especially for sacred buildings of the Christian religion, the element of sunlight has been a necessary determinant for the emerging churches. Sunlight determines the reception of space, emphasizes and reveals the architecture, influences its aesthetic form, and, at the same time, becomes a determinant of emotions related to perception. People engage their sight, the brain processes the recorded images; the image, that is generated in the brain, is the result of reflected light, which, reflected from the viewed image, hits the eye. Everyone sees differently. At the same time, there are some common repeatable collections of impressions which determine the aesthetic value. What type of light influences shaping the vividness of the interior of sacred buildings and how it happens becomes a determinant of the perception of the sacred space.

The article concerns the correlation of light and shadow with the experienced space. It takes on the characterization of five objects in which the subjective sensations of light characterize and enhance the value of architecture. The beauty of the game of light and shadow – inside or outside of it – is almost poetically telling fleeting stories, provoking the appetite of curious eyes. Correspondence of matter with intangible but eloquent spirit is an infinite theme in architecture. The article deals with the close connection between the consciousness of architecture and the light.

The article presents results of an international project seminar which was organized and conducted by Lviv architecture school in Lviv Polytechnic National University in May 2017 having invited artistic groups from Toronto (Canada), Dresden (Germany) and the city of Dnipro to participate.

The article analyzes the architectural peculiarities that are common for residential space of theological educational institutions led by the Christian churches of the Byzantine rite, as based on the example of the architectural and space-planning organization of the Lviv Theological Seminary of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, outlines the major factors that prevailingly influence the formation of theological seminary residential space, and provides recommendations for designing residential buildings, dining rooms and facilities for sports and recreation within the general residential space of theological educational institutions.

The article highlights the process of the formation of the Pochayiv Lavra architectural ensemble and the role of the shrine in the history and culture of Ukraine. The historical preconditions for the construction, architectural and planning structure of the complex have been analyzed. The relevance of architectural and planning structure of the Lavra to socio-political factors that influenced the architecture of the complex has been established. The Lavra complex planning has been analysed and its compositional dominants have been determined.

On selected examples, the authors show how conscious design decisions on the building form affect the perception of the interior and create the atmosphere inside the building. The paper concerns the use of natural light in the process of the building form design in order to produce desired interior visual environment. The authors emphasise the role of natural light in architecture, especially in the perception of space.

The definition of architecture often repeated after Le Corbusier states that “Architecture is the learned game, correct and magnificent, of forms assembled in light”. To fully understand it we should quote his other statement: “Light creates ambience and feel of a place, as well as the expression of a structure”. Juhani Palasmaa, who points our attention to the multisensory reception of architecture, presents the nature of the idea of light in a similar manner. Peter Zumthor, on the other hand, continuing the idea of synaesthesia in the perception of works of architecture - the light, the changes of its intensity and colour - regards it as an element of recording an architectural form in the memory of the viewer. Tadao Ando wrote that such elements like light or wind make sense only when we set them apart from the external world using architecture. Based on these views and the observation of the anthropogenic space, we can acknowledge the compositional role of light as equally fundamental as its functional one, underlined, among others, by the founders of the Bauhaus school, who strived to obtain an effect of rich, natural light within a room. Santiago Calatrava, when asked about its role, answered “Light. I make it in my buildings for comfort”. However, when observing the effects of light and shadow produced by the openwork vaults of the complex in Valencia or the Oriente station in Lisbon, one would be hard pressed not to notice a fundamental compositional intent within them.
The paper will present modern built projects whose main compositional motifs revolve around effects that utilise daylight – translucence, diffusion, reflection, as well as light and shadow effects - in order to establish an extraordinary mood of a form and its interior, against a backdrop of the theoretical thoughts of the practitioners of architecture of the current and past century.

Architecture has existed for thousands of years and light is its constant companion. However, it is the contemporary space that offers sensations non-existent before. It is difficult to underestimate the significance of the oculus in the interior of the Pantheon, the sequence of shadows on the striae of the Greek column, or – the more recent – darkness inside the chapel in Ronchamp, where the light is seeping through the embrasures in the coloured windows. Yet the darkness in the interior of the Jewish Museum, the luminous cruciform cut into the façade of the Church of the Light or the transparent body of the Fondation Cartier all clearly indicate that in modern architecture light also plays a role different from that given to it formely, at the time when cathedrals were white. It consists in the difference between closed and open, between the impenetrable wall and the transparency of the curtain wall. Along with the new language of the forms of contemporary architecture, the “light” on/in the building and our reception of the structure have also changed. And yet, despite the changes, architecture still remains “the masterly, correct and magnificent play of forms assembled in the light”.

Various diverse artificial water bodies in the form of fountains, cascades, ponds, etc. are a common element within the public spaces of cities. Such water-based elements have been placed in urban spaces since ancient times - they served utilitarian needs and beautified urban or garden spaces. Currently, in the process of the shaping of city spaces, fountains and various types of small water bodies also make an appearance. Today, they utilise technological solutions that make it possible to control water streams and create diverse lighting effects. Urban fountains and cascades are also being designed while taking into account principles of sustainable design - they use rainwater and their placement in public spaces positively affects the urban microclimate. Such a holistic approach to the design of urban fountains leads to the fact that we see them more often and we are more welcoming of them in our immediate surroundings - and they very often become the hallmarks and tourist attractions of cities.

The subject of current article is comparison of design solutions which influence on the improvement of natural light accessibility in the multi-storey residential dwelling.
The exposition to the natural light as well as the role of sunlight in the context of health and human mood do not have to be explained. The role of natural light is particularly significant in the leisure area. One of the basic features of residential architecture is the recreational function and an oppor-tunity for a person to regenerate in this area.
The author raises the subjects connected with guaranteeing the comfortable insolation in living and night zones as well as the appropriate location of half-private spaces such as balconies, loggias and terraces based on the example of objects accomplished in Wroclaw, Warsaw and the conceptual project of future residential area for Y generation, “Divercity Apartment”, located in Poznan.

The article deals with the specifics of lighting of stave churches of Ukraine and stone temples, erected or rebuilt during the 19th century. It explains how the approach to the lighting of Orthodox churches changed during the Synodical period. The Ukrainian experience of solving the issue of lighting of restoration and reconstruction objects was described. The specifics of lighting the interiors of church structures is illustrated by the examples of the Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra and the Saint Vladimir Cathedral in Chersonese. The specifics of lighting of restoration objects is based on the need to combine the conformity to the authentic view of light fittings (according the photos from the archive) and modern lighting technologies, so in many cases light fittings are manufactured in the limited quantity under the author’s drawings.

The purpose of this publication is to present examples of residential architecture in Scandinavian countries whilst looking at the criteria for assessment in the context of sustainable development and social aspects. The initiator of the competition for the best examples is the Norwegian Nordic Innovation Agency, which promotes Scandinavian architecture in the context of innovation and environment-friendly solutions.
The following complexes of housing development were analysed:
Denmark: 1. Ellebo Garden Room, 2. Future Sustainable Social Housing, 3. Upcycle House
Sweden: 1. Fittja People’s Palace, 2. Greenhouse Augustenborg
Finland: 1. Puukuokka Housing Block, 2. Siena and Umbra Housing Blocks
Norway: 1. Plus House Larvik
Nordic Innovations initiatives address both architectural projects and urban planning.

Main tendencies, appropriateness and features of the embodiment of the architectural and theological essence of the light are defined in architecturally spatial organization of the Orthodox Church; the value of the natural and artificial light is set in forming of symbolic structure of sacral space and architectonics of the church building.

This article is the beginning of research on Justinian’s Digest, concentrating on Volume 8 – On Servitude. Particular attention has been paid to regulations that comply with building regulations (in today’s sense), and in particular, those one that relate to the access of buildings to light. The Romans identified 19 lightning-related records, dividing them into servants for urban and rural land, and mostly they were civil regulations. In Poland we have paragraphs 12, 13, 60 WT, which talk about sunlight and the termination, they are obligatory for urban and rural development (principles for urban development function as an exception to the general rule). The article has compared the ancient records with the current Polish regulations, attention is drawn to the similarities and differences between them.

The article discusses matters associated with lighting the architecture of detached houses in the context of nature, using natural sunlight. Single-family detached houses, which constitute the majority of dispersed buildings in the Polish landscape of cities and villages, have a significant impact on the quality of the space and human life within the residential environment. The priority in the shaping of modern human habitats that contain detached houses are the mutual relations between architecture and nature.
The article contains 16 architectural and urban designs by second-year students, developed during the 2016/2017 academic year at the Chair of the Shaping of the Housing Environment of the Faculty of Architecture of the Cracow University of Technology. Tendencies towards adopting the dominant role of the sun as a priority in functional and spatial solutions appear in the concepts and visions of spatial detached houses.