Portfolio | Projects & Clients | Awards | Design Process

Soka University of America - Custom Fixture Design

Aliso Viejo, California

In the hills and canyons of Aliso Viejo, California, a home for the Soka University of America has taken shape.   With terrain reminiscent of a Mediterranean landscape, both the architecture and the lighting were inspired by the traditions of hill-town living.   A warm and intimate environment for the community of students and faculty was a primary goal for the team of designers lead by Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer and Summit Architects.   The master plan is a 103-acre academic village for 2,500 students, with the first phase encompassing 600,000 square feet of facilities on 75 acres.    The lighting design scope included interior and exterior lighting for three academic buildings, the student commons, library, alumni center, reception center, gymnasium, and guest residence, sports fields, tennis courts, and the remainder of the site.  

Over two years of design evolution resulted in a campus that focuses inward to a densely populated central core.   The lighting responds to this modulation of space and density with a variation in brightness and scale that gains momentum as one reaches the spine of the campus.   The interior spaces incorporate custom Mediterranean style luminaires that complement the classic architecture. The campus master plan with a perimeter ring road is softly illuminated with warm “Master Color” cutoff luminaires to limit unwanted spill light into adjacent neighborhoods.   Key entry points into campus from the ring road are marked with brightly glowing multi-headed custom luminaires.   Single-headed versions of the fixtures are used with a softer glow finish within the circulation pathways and plazas.