Set in the open plains of Zhangbei County, China, Zhangbei Mirage emerges like an illuminated monolith, an architectural presence shaped by light as much as material. Designed by Beijing-based Puri Lighting Design, the project stands as a study in contrast: a solid concrete core held within an exposed steel framework, its heaviness transformed through a precise lighting strategy that gives it lift, dimension, and clarity.
LIGHTS
Rather than dominate the structure, the lighting design works with the building’s form. Puri Lighting Design employed a careful mix of fixtures with varying beam angles and wattages, 36W with a narrow 10° focus and 48W with a broader 30° spread. These were discreetly embedded into the steel frame and arranged using an uplighting configuration. The result is a sculptural interplay between structure and illumination. The beams, while subtle, enhance the frame’s rhythm and verticality, making the building appear to breathe within the open landscape.
Unlike the soft ambient lighting used indoors, the exterior uplighting is more assertive, designed to emphasize depth and draw the eye through layers of shadow and form. This contrast produces a dynamic visual hierarchy. What might otherwise be a static steel frame becomes animated at night, shifting in tone and presence depending on the viewer’s perspective and distance.
Puri Lighting’s choice of a pure 4000K white light reinforces the building’s conceptual clarity. Without the influence of warmer or colored tones, the lighting reads as clean, modern, and meditative. In this remote field setting, the building’s glow becomes almost symbolic, less about decoration and more about presence. It becomes a vessel for light, as the designers intended, casting a soft but unmistakable pulse into the open landscape.
The project reflects Puri Lighting Design’s wider philosophy: eschewing one-size-fits-all aesthetics in favor of site-specific, architecture-led solutions. With headquarters in Beijing and satellite offices in Los Angeles and Chengdu, Puri has spent over a decade refining this approach. Their portfolio spans more than 500 completed projects, and their work has been recognized with numerous international and domestic awards, including honors from IALD, IES, LDA, LIT, and A+Awards, among others.
Zhangbei Mirage distills that experience into a pure expression of architectural lighting. Without spectacle or ornament, the project uses light to frame space, reveal structure, and suggest something quietly monumental. It doesn’t seek attention, it creates presence.
