The Arberger Mill
The Arberger Mühle foundation village is located in the middle of the old town of Arbergens near Bremen in Germany. It was built in 1803 and is a Dutch mill set in impressive grounds. It is the oldest preserved mill in Germany, and has been a heritage listed building since 1973.
As part of the extensive renovation of the mill, we were asked by the owner whether we wanted to participate in the development and implementation of a lighting concept for the outer facade of the mill.
The owner's aim was to integrate the mill into the cityscape as an outstanding building, but, as the premises are also used for events, to be able to change the colour of the lower part of the façade on special occasions.
This, however, must be achieved with the lowest possible energy consumption.
What looked simple at first soon proved otherwise. The ground plan and the architecture are complex, and the extensive requirements of the monument protection authority had to be taken into account.
Several test mock-ups were necessary during which the responsible monument conservator was always present, until we had found the ideal technical solution.
Since the restoration and preservation of the historic mill is only possible with a great deal of private and honorary commitment, we took on the lighting planning, programming and construction supervision as a sponsorship of this project.
