Landscape Architect Articles

Lighting Time at the Irvine Spectrum Center, Irvine, Calif.04-05-16 | Feature

Lighting Time at the Irvine Spectrum Center, Irvine, Calif.
Landscape Architecture by Burton Studios
Lighting Design by Matt Levesque, First Circle Design Inc.

The Irvine Spectrum Center in Southern California has it all – shopping, dining, entertainment, and now, a community clock. Designed by Matt Levesque of First Circle Design, "The Clock" is composed of lighted pavers set flat into the ground and a series of lit umbrellas. The overall design was meant to both encourage guest engagement and to tell time. At the top of every hour there is an audible "gong."

Irvine Spectrum Center is one of Southern California's most popular entertainment and lifestyle destinations, with more than 17 million visitors annually. When it opened in November of 1995, it was envisioned by the Irvine Company as a unique retail center, offering an array of shopping for the whole family and a gathering point for the community.

As part of its continuous evolution and focus on plaza destination areas, the Irvine Company, who owns the Spectrum Center, relocated a 50' tall, 50' wide ficus tree from their office headquarters to serve as a focal point in the new open court surrounded by restaurants and shops. Lighting designer Matt Levesque of First Circle Design was illuminating the exterior for a nearby shop in the center when he was approached by the Irvine Company to help fulfill a vision they had for the new plaza. First Circle Design worked with the owner to create a plaza destination with a kinetic feel, which would encourage guests to enjoy the surrounding environment and create a gathering space.

A 50' tall ficus tree from the headquarters of the Irvine Company, the owners of the Irvine Spectrum Center, is offset in the center of the clock design. Overall, the clock is 77' in diameter and took nine months from concept to completion. Of those nine months, eight weeks were required to build the clock, and one week was required to program it.

The concept was a collaboration between the consultants, contractors, lighting manufacturer, and the center ownership. The design derived from multiple needs: to aesthetically balance and support the newly planted massive tree, to create a seating experience that was kinetic and aligned with the center's clientele, and to fulfill the need for a town hall clock. "The Clock" is more of a sculptural piece that is designed to engage the guests than a clock set for time function only.

To bring the concept to fruition, a variety of designs were considered. Levesque had to take into consideration the specifications and sizes of the existing paving. Although the paving is a standard product, a standard lighting fixture was not available that would fit within the existing dimensions and specifications.

The umbrellas around the courtyard were originally intended to just provide shade, but Levesque realized that they could act as the hours hand of the clock if there were 12 of them. Each umbrella is lit with a custom LED tape that is integrated into the clock's programming. The umbrellas and the pavers change color with the seasons as well as for six holidays throughout the year. There are as many as 16 million colors to choose from.

Levesque worked with Targetti USA to create a custom product that would smoothly integrate into the required size of the standard pavers as well as into the plaza floor. Three types of custom RGB paver light tiles were created to represent the hour, minute and second marks. The product was designed specifically to be trimless so that when grouted, it would lay flat into the plaza floor, creating a smooth pedestrian walkway. To create a kinetic experience and bring "The Clock" to life, a playback control system is utilized to control the time and color. "The Clock" demonstrates real time from approximately two hours before sunset to one hour after sunrise; and it has a color palette of up to 16 million colors. The hour, minute and second hands all utilize two colors to differentiate a progressive movement of time throughout the day. The color palette is determined by the season, providing a naturally evolving feeling of time.

The umbrellas were an element added to the overall design, acting as a sub-gathering area within the clock's circumference to encourage guests to not just view the clock but, better yet, to experience it. Each umbrella is illuminated with a custom LED tape product, from the same lighting manufacturer, integrated into the overall programming of the clock. The glowing umbrellas incorporate the function of shade and change color with the progression of the hours.

The colors also change for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, the 4th of July, Halloween, the Christmas season, and New Year's. And yes - the clock does a countdown on New Year's Eve.

"The Clock" Fun Facts:
• Seventy-seven feet in diameter.
• Sixty second tick marks.
• Forty-eight minute marks.
• Twelve hour marks with 12 minute marks inside of them.
• Second hand changes color as it moves.
• Top of every hour – the clock has an audible "gong."
• Took nine months from concept to completion.
• One week of programming.
• Only eight weeks to build it.

Levesque had to consider the existing paving when designing the clock, and found that none of the available standard fixtures would fit the required dimensions and specifications. Three custom RGB paver light tile products were created to represent the hours, minutes, and seconds. They were designed to lay level with the plaza floor when grouted, maintaining an uninterrupted pedestrian walkway.

Project Team
City: Irvine, Calif.
Lighting Designer: Matt Levesque, First Circle Design Inc.
Landscape Architect: Burton Studios
Client: Bob Lisle, The Irvine Company
Lighting Programmer: Mark Matzkanin

As seen in LASN magazine, April 2016.