The Colour, Light and Contrast Manual

Book excerpt: Endorsed by the Society of Light and Lighting, this practical bookoffers comprehensive guidance on how colour, light and contrast canbe incorporated within buildings to enhance their usability. Thebook provides state-of-the-art, clear guidance as well as avaluable information source for busy professionals involved in thedesign or management of new and existing environments. The ways colour, light and contrast are used within builtenvironments are critical in determining how people interact withthe space, and how confident, safe, and secure they will feel whendoing so. They also have a major influence on a person’ssense of well-being and their ability to use the environmentindependently and without undue effort. Understanding how to use colour and contrast and how they areinfluenced by both natural and artificial lighting is vital for allthose involved in the design and management of the environments andspaces we all use. In recent years there has been a considerable amount of workundertaken to further our understanding of how colour, light andcontrast affect emotion and sensory abilities, and how they canassist or hinder people in their everyday lives. Other publications consider these issues individually but TheColour, Light and Contrast Manual: designing and managing inclusivebuilt environments draws knowledge and information together toproduce a unique, comprehensive and informative guide to how thethree elements can work together to improve the design andmanagement of environments for us all. Supporting website at: www.wiley.com/go/brightandcook