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How to Enhance Architectural Lighting

What’s the one design element that influences everything from mood to usability? Light. Because of its essential role in architecture, impacting performance, comfort, visual appeal and energy efficiency, architects are turning to innovative ways to design architectural lighting, using materials like perforated metal to shape and control how natural and artificial light is filtered, diffused, and used.

Here’s how perforated metal is delivering smarter, sustainable lighting outcomes and transforming how buildings interact with light, inside and out – with Arrow Metal project examples for ideas and inspiration.

Benefits Of Perforated Metal For Architectural Lighting

Glare control

Direct sunlight floods a space with light, but too much of it results in harsh glare and heat gain, making environments uncomfortable and overly reliant on artificial cooling. Perforated metal is the ideal passive solar control solution for sunny elevations. With its customisable patterns and hole sizes, panels can be precision-engineered to filter natural light through windows, reducing the intensity without blocking light entirely. Brightness and heat are controlled, while still maintaining views and daylight benefits.

Sustainable interiors

By diffusing sunlight, perforated metal helps to create a calm, more evenly lit interior – a key design goal in buildings where lighting quality impacts occupant experience, such as schools, public buildings, and commercial spaces. By reducing the contrast between light and shadow, interiors are balanced throughout the day, reducing reliance on artificial lighting, cutting energy costs, and boosting project sustainability.

Artificial lighting improvement

Perforated metal also transforms artificial light. Backlit perforated metal panels can turn ordinary walls and exterior facades into glowing features, scattering the light to create a multidimensional visual effect. The pairing of perforated metal with artificial light is increasingly used for public art, signage, ceilings, and entryways, helping achieve both aesthetic and functional project benefits.

Designing with Perforated Metal: Creative Architectural Lighting

Whether you’re aiming for a subtle daylight effect or a unique facade, perforated metal provides a range of creative possibilities for projects where light needs to be both controlled and celebrated:

• Customisable patterns: By tailoring the hole size, spacing, and open area of perforated panels, light can be enhanced or reduced. Small, closely spaced holes filter light evenly, ideal for spaces and settings that need glare reduction or subtle ambience. Larger perforations allow more light to pass through, creating bold, defined light patterns, suitable for spaces that need to maximise natural light and brightness or create distinct shadow effects.

• Design options: Many perforated metal designs are suitable for architectural lighting applications. Ranging from classic and cost-effective round hole perforations to fully customised, CAD-drawn patterns featuring nature-inspired designs or photographic images, panels can be specified to meet project visual, lighting, budget, and ambience goals. 

• Lighting integration: Perforated panels combine beautifully with backlighting, LEDs, or projection to create standout facades, entryways and foyer features that transition from day to night. 

• Material durability: Perforated metal’s weather resistance and durability make it perfect for exterior lighting designs that need to perform as well as they look. The most popular exterior metal for perforation is aluminium, known for its strength, longevity, and low maintenance, while perforated brass is a timeless favourite for luxury interiors thanks to its warm, heritage elegance.

Architectural Lighting Control: Perforated Metal Project Examples

Take a look at our latest projects to explore the illuminating ways perforated metal helps to control and improve light:

Cabramatta car park

An old concrete car park in Cabramatta’s busy Dutton Lane has gone from eyesore to enchanting through clever use of backlit perforated soffit panels. Safely lighting the pedestrian areas, the new panels feature orange inserts to create a soft, inviting glow at night, connecting the open car park to the streetscape.

Paramount on Parkes public art

LED lighting creates a mesmerising and intriguing effect for the perforated public art in the new Paramount on Parkes building in Parramatta. The work features curved ‘floating’ perforated panels, each lit by an LED base that transforms the piece into a spectacular evening light show. 

Hurlstone Park pavilion

A perforated metal facade helps to keep Hurlstone Park’s new pavilion cool and lit, providing shade without reducing natural daylight. Finished in red, the facade complements the unique Y-shape design, making it open, inviting, and accessible to all users. 

Merrylands RSL

Backlit perforated metal serves as a beautiful architectural barrier separating Merrylands RSL gaming area from the rest of the club. Installed in a U-shape and finished in bright white, functional perforated screens have become a striking statement of light and shadow thanks to panel curvature and floor-level lighting. 

Canterbury South Public School

Perforated metal is controlling daylight and heat gain at Canterbury South Public School. With some elevations in full sun and others requiring more natural light, perforations were customised to the location and solar movement to create bright or shady learning environments that maximise student comfort.

Specify Perforated Metal For Architectural Lighting

Browse our range of perforated metal patterns, metals, and finishes in our brochure. Free sample and specification packs are available on request – chat to our team on (02) 9748 2200 or email sales@arrowmetal.com.au

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