ABSTRACT
Different regions have different climates, some hot and sunny with strong shadows, some disposed to cloudy overcast skies under which shadows are soft, almost non-existent. The light, and hence the quality of shadows, is very different in northern climates where cloud cover softens and disperses the light from the sun. Shadows, rather than being stark and dark, are gentle and muted. The sun and the deep shadow of Italy is more sympathetic to the ‘patination’ that Italians sometimes allow their buildings to acquire. Just as the architects of the television scenes of finished makeovers want to enhance the attraction of their improvements by suggesting the rooms have become sunnier, so too can more poetic architects seek to transport a particular climatic light to a different region. Architecture responds subliminally to the light in which it stands. Bright colours shine under clear skies with strong and stable sunshine.
