C – 347 Oshiwara Industrial Estate, Link Road,
Andheri(W), Mumbai – 400104.
C – 347 Oshiwara Industrial Estate, Link Road,
Andheri(W), Mumbai – 400104.
Master of Architectural
Lighting Design
Faculty of Art, Architecture and Design,
Hochschule Wismar, Germany
Kirtee Siingh’s relationship with light began at the age of 11. Throughout his teens, he spent time observing, experimenting and playing with light, gradually developing a fascination that would eventually become his profession. Today, with 16 years of professional experience in architectural lighting design, his work sits at the intersection of art and technology. Siingh holds a Major in Pure Mathematics from Fergusson College, often referred to as the “Oxford of the East.”
After nine years of practising lighting design professionally, he pursued a Master of Arts in Architectural Lighting Design at Hochschule Wismar, Germany, developing a deeper understanding of light as an architectural and creative discipline. His mathematical background gives him a natural affinity for technology and systems. He works hands-on with lighting and automation technologies including DMX, DALI, 0–10V, KNX and Casambi. But technology is not where his design process begins. For Siingh, lighting begins with the narrative: what a space should communicate, what should be revealed, what should remain in darkness, and how people should experience the architecture. Technology then becomes the means of translating that narrative into light.
At the heart of his approach is a simple hierarchy: Mother Nature first. Humans second. Architecture third. This forms the basis of his understanding of responsible lighting design. Artificial light is not without consequence. Excessive or poorly directed lighting can waste energy, contribute to light pollution and disturb the natural nocturnal environment, affecting vegetation, insects, birds and neighbouring ecosystems.This is why darkness has an important place in his work. Darkness is a shared resource, one that can provide contrast, preserve the character of night and reduce the amount of artificial light introduced into the environment.
The objective is not to illuminate everything, but to understand where light is needed, where it is not, and how much is enough. For Siingh, the balance between art and technology is ultimately about restraint as much as possibility. A lighting design may involve sophisticated controls and complex technology, but its success is measured by the experience it creates—and by the light it chooses not to use.
His approach is therefore not simply about creating light, but about understanding light deeply enough to know when darkness is the better choice.