When Reykjavík-based lighting design studio LISKA was commissioned to transform a tall tower façade, the brief was deceptively simple: turn an ordinary building into a landmark that feels part of the city, its skyline, and its culture.
Yet the challenge that followed was far more nuanced: how to design a media façade that is expressive without being loud, animated without being intrusive, and iconic without slipping into spectacle.
For Örn Erlendsson, senior lighting designer at LISKA, the starting point was not technology, but context: “Before anything else, we ask: where is this building truly seen? From street level, from a distance, from the skyline?” With Smáratorg , the answer was clear early on — the upper portion of the tower is what dominates the horizon. The design, therefore, focused not on the entire façade, but on the part that actually shapes the city’s silhouette.
The second foundational idea sprang from something deeply cultural: the Nordic sky.
LISKA envisioned a soft, slowly undulating motion — a reference to auroral shifts rather than dramatic animations. A landmark not because it shouts, but because it breathes.
The design would ultimately rely on transparent media lighting, integrating into the existing architecture with minimal visual weight during the day, yet delivering a subtle, living presence after dark.
Unlike many new media façades, Turninn from the Eik real estate company was an existing tower undergoing renovation, with structural, glazing, mounting and planning constraints. That reality shaped the entire process. “This project had a long planning phase — deliberately,” Örn explains. “We tested many prototypes in real conditions. Every decision had to respect the building and the environment.”
LISKA opened a broad RFI process to identify partners capable not only of supplying technology, but co-developing it. It wasn’t a case of buying a product. They needed a manufacturer who would explore possibilities with them. Vivalyte was strongly involved from the start with problem-solving, prototyping, and testing.
Several iterations were tested: How bright is bright enough without overwhelming? How much resolution is necessary for a soft gradient effect? What happens to the window load when adding lights and mounting hardware? How will Icelandic weather affect long-term reliability?
This methodical approach paid off: the final system integrates naturally into the façade and withstands the harsh climate without visual clutter.
In Europe, media façades and architectural lighting are increasingly scrutinized for energy use, sustainability, and light pollution. LISKA approached these concerns head-on. “We had open conversations with the municipality, neighbors, and stakeholders. We didn’t want a beacon or an animated advertising wall. The façade is dynamic, but very soft — tasteful, minimal, appropriate.”
Lighting intensity adapts through the evening, dims with natural light, and switches off completely at night when there is no audience. Sustainability and responsibility are part of the design. The result is neither branding nor spectacle — but a carefully calibrated, living architectural element.
One of the most elegant gestures is how the lighting blends into the architecture. Only the top half of the tower has light lines, but it’s programmed with a gradient so it blends seamlessly downwards. It becomes part of the building, not a layer stuck on top.
During the day, the hardware disappears into the façade. At dusk, the tower slowly comes alive. From a moving car, one might just sense a glow; standing still, the motion reveals itself. Soft, slow, harmonic.
Smáratorg Tower is now exactly what client Eik hoped for — a landmark, not because it dominates the skyline, but because it enhances it.
Project: Turninn Façade Lighting
Location: Kópavogur, Iceland
Lighting Design: LISKA (Örn Erlendsson)
Integrator: Exton
Technology Used — Vivalyte Pixeline Flex 4025
Completion: 2025
Building Owner: Eik fasteignafélag
Project Type: Architectural façade animation / ambient media façade
