Proceedings of: Workshop on Improving Building Design for Persons with Low Vision

Matte Finishes

Other just general things that are important. Matte finishes (slide 6) are always better than specular surfaces or polished granite. And that can be columns, and it can even be lighting fixtures.

When I was photographing assisted-living communities for a research study, we went to this one craft room and there were women playing cards. There were about five sets of women playing cards, but the tables were rectangular. So you would have one here, one there, and, like, two over there.

I knew there was a game room, so I asked them, “Why are you playing [in the craft room] with these tables?” And they said, “Because in the game room, where they have the square tables, the lighting fixture isn’t good and it puts a lot of glare. The table is polished, and it puts a lot of glare on the table. Plus it’s shiny brass. So they had a direct glare vision, and then they also had a reflected glare vision. So they were just accommodating themselves by using different spaces, not for the intended purpose.

That’s what people are going to do in these facilities. They’re going to make [the facilities] work, even if it isn’t as convenient.

Light [Reflective] Values

You [have] already said that’s one way to use less energy, to get better light in the room, because you’re talking about reflected light and how these are reflected. [Light Reflective] Values [LRV] are on every paint chip. They are on ceiling tiles. I mean, they’re on your materials, so it’s not at all hard to find them. That’s why it’s important to come in early [in the design process], so that you have all of the [LRVs] before you start doing [detailed design].

Glass Surfaces

Glass doors, countertops and freestanding display cases should be really defined well. I think they shouldn’t be used a lot, and we should use them very sparingly. And when they are used, you have the problem of really making them visually seen.

This is the entrance to the Brooklyn Museum (slide 7). And this is the one where there were so many steps that they eliminated the steps. But now it’s hard for people to find which ones of those [glass panels] are doors. And a lot of the [glass panels] have black vertical graining in them but aren’t doors, and some of them are. So by the time you find the sign, you’ve gone to several different areas to find them. But then when you come in, you see you also have the glare [from] the door[s and glass panels] (slide 8).

On the other hand, look how easy it is not to walk into those statues. I mean, they’re a great contrast. They’re right out in the middle of the space, but they’re very easy to see. And the bases are [raised and] a little bigger than the [statues] themselves, but still [present a stumbling] problem.