Genk, Belgium based creative lighting design practice Painting With Light collected third prize in the 2012 City.People.Light Award for its creative lighting of the amazing C-MINE development in their home town.
The Award was collected by Painting With Light’s principal light designer Luc Peumans and Luc Dullers, deputy Mayor of the City of Genk in Medellin, Colombia.
The competition, hosted by Philips and the Urban Community International Association (LUCI) and now is its tenth year, attracted world class entries from around the globe.
The Awards recognise the efforts of cities and communities to transform and develop their environments with the creative application of lighting and visual elements. Awards are given to the cities that best integrate an appreciation of contemporary urban living needs with notions of the ‘city’, ‘people’ and ‘light’.
C-MINE was a massive undertaking for Painting With Light, involving meticulous thought, imagination and over 800 lightsources – many customised specifically for the project.
Peumans was able to combine his experiences in the different but symbiotic worlds of entertainment and architectural sectors to produce a magical result
The former Winterslag coal mine, a huge landmark with an epic place in the region’s industrial heritage, has been tastefully redeveloped to offer locals and visitors an historical overview and numerous activities for the present.
Looking to the future, it combines a visitor attraction and public event spaces with a new industrial park attracting a host of new creative companies and industries. Its facilities including a multiscreen cinema, two theatres and a large square for live entertainments and special events plus several indoor event spaces.
At the heart of C-MINE are two massive and magnificent mine lift shaft towers which stand proudly as a reminder of the past and the community and commerce that it brought to the city.
The lighting brief for C-MINE was demanding! Peumans’ concept had to look amazing; integrate old and new architecture and buildings seamlessly into effectively a new space; be energy efficient and also satisfy the demands of no less than four architectural practices … all working on different aspects of the overall project!
The City.Light.People Award Jury – consisting of prominent architects, designers and lighting professionals – commented that it was a “Well integrated project with a clear narrative in its context that preserves the heritage site, and with a passion for design and light, creates a new living area for the city.”
Luc Peumans, founder and co-owner of Painting With Light was delighted to receive the Award. He states “It’s the first international award for us since launching our architectural division three years ago, so I am very proud of this third prize – especially with such strong competition”.
He adds that it reflects PWL’s unique approach to urban lighting design that is informed by their theatrical and show presentation background.
“Thanks to a great team, we delivered the project on time and in budget. The two fundamental points of the lighting design were creating a ‘living’ square that can be accessed by anyone, and simultaneously respecting the historic look and feel of the site.”
Genk’s Mayor Wim Dries, an instrumental figure in the whole C-MINE concept, says that they are thrilled with the project and the new lighting design that was launched in May this year, “C-MINE is a place of creativity – it is now transformed into being future-driven, ambitious and sustainable”.
The overall lighting concept for C-MINE is a collaboration between the City of Genk, energy providers Infrax and Painting With Light and the City.People.Light Award is actually the 7th accolade that C-MINE project has collected since 2010.
Photo caption
Left to right : Martine De Regge, (Chair of LUCI), Luc Peumans (Painting With Light), Luc Dullers (Deputy Mayor of City of Genk) and Jaap van der Linden (PHILIPS, Senior Segment Marketing Manager Urban Lighting EMEA.