Week #6 - Jackie - Modern Bazaar at the Irvine Spectrum Center?

This is actually my second time going to the Irvine Spectrum Center, and each time I go I don’t fully explore the entire mall for some reason so I discover something new every time! 

So far, I’ve really enjoyed the atmosphere as well as the Islamic, and at times Spanish inspired Architecture and decor. The lighting concept is a little all over the place with half of it being accent lighting and the other half being colorful, modern 21st-century lighting that sometimes acts like an accent, but other times is an interactive experience. If you pay close attention, it very much feels like two worlds colliding rather than working together at the same time. However, it is still a fun place to visit. 

Take, for instance, this little courtyard with the long water fountain is a good marriage between appropriate lighting and the architecture. The lights in the fountain, uplights on the palms as well as the pillars, on the underside of the umbrellas, and the string lights in the back are subtle yet interesting ways of illuminating the accents creatively. No lighting takes away or distracts you from the architecture.

Although I understand what they were trying to do and I appreciate trying to make it colorful, there wasn't any need to add these neon accents, and this eating area dedicated to an overall modern mood lighting with a floor accent. It takes me out of the old-world setting that the builders were going for, especially with that eating area; we went from these subtle accents to led strips that are not found all the way through the mall. The LED strip in the first one could have worked if it was softer and if they chose white instead of blue. It also distracts from the pendant light fixture hanging in the center which wants to be the center of attention, but unfortunately is not.                                                                                          The Irvine Spectrum has gorgeous architecture, it would have been nice if the lighting designer would have focused on accentuating the space rather than trying to make it modern with colorful lights. It would have been nicer to keep it simple and follow a reduced color palette in which the space would have still come across as a modern Bazaar.