LED lights for museums
For museums, the use of LED lighting is becoming more interesting every day. Especially, the quality of light has improved significantly in recent years in their efficiency and color rendering. To preserve art objects without damage as long as possible, they actually should be kept cool, dry and in the dark. However, to ensure that museumgoers still can enjoy the artworks, the right lighting is necessary.
Lighting in museums should always serve two purposes:
- General lighting - Sufficient brightness in the whole room
- Accent lighting - Directly Illuminating and accentuating artworks/objects
Which LED lights are for use in museums?
Showcase lighting
Some objects can only be exhibited in the protection of showcases with integrated lighting.
For showcases without their own lighting, the ceiling lighting should always refers to the showcases. So reflections can be largely prevented. In addition, it is highly recommended to use anti-reflective glass and dimmable ceiling fixtures.
Lighting for objects
Objects often receive a special charm when illuminated in the dark. With spotlights, track lights and flood lights it is possible illuminate the entire object or only parts of it. Structure and shapes are emphasized by shadows.
In contrast to spotlights with tightly focused light, flood lights have a larger beam angle, which is suitable for illuminating the entire object. For this, the distance to the object must be greater than for the illumination of details.
Lighting for artworks
The biggest enemy of paintings is natural lighting. At the same time, the most important goal in museums is to provide particularly natural lighting - with artificial light.
Previously used incandescent and halogen lamps actually have a low damage potential due to their low UV radiation. However, due to the high heat output, they can have more negative effects and are therefore less suitable than LEDs.