Scottish Parliament, Holyrood

In 1997, the Scots successfully fought for their own parliament via a referendum - after almost 300 years of administration from the distant city of London. The architectural competition was won by the Catalan-national Enric Miralles (EMBT, Barcelona). His design for the irregularly shaped site in Edinburgh used the sympathetic metaphor of a harbour bay full of boats. Despite many adversities and tragic events - Miralles died in 2000, in the middle of the implementation planning - the parliament building was successfully completed and opened in 2004. This is due in no small way to the professionalism of the London-based architectural offices of RMJM. A collage of diversity with organic-looking details characterises the building’s appearance.

The conference halls for political parties and commissions are as multifaceted as the rest of the architecture and therefore each demand their own individual lighting concepts. Various types of spotlights on ERCO 3-circuit track solved the lighting tasks here with great flexibility: from concentrated sessions without public access to turbulent press conferences.

In the cafeteria and the lobbies, the lighting also takes on a decorative component: the glass cylinders of the freely arranged Starpoint downlights create points of light which correspond to the curvaceous shape of the ceiling panels. At the same time, the recessed luminaires fitted with low-voltage halogen lamps provide a brilliant, yet pleasant light.