The Kocatepe Mosque is the largest mosque in Ankara, Turkey, as well as one of the largest in the world, accommodating up to 24,000 worshipers at a time. Built between 1967 and 1987, the mosque can be seen from almost anywhere in the capital by its four minarets standing 88 m (288 ft) high, and its gorgeous gold-plated dome.
The mosque is one of the biggest installations of the Ankara City Beautification Project, which consists of over 20 Signify LED lighting installations throughout the capital. The designer's lighting vision was to create a warm, elegant and comfortable area at night that provided safety for visitors.
To create a lighting solution to meet all the goals for the project, different color temperatures of white light were used to highlight all of the building's architectural details. Warm, neutral, and cool white light was necessary to provide a comfortable and dynamic lighting ambiance, as well as to keep the area safe and illuminated for visitors. iW Blast Powercore and iW Reach Powercore gen2 luminaires (now specified with
ReachElite) were mounted around the window frames, minarets, and along the rooftop. iW Graze Powercore luminaires were placed end-to-end to highlight the structure as well as the window frames. The lighting solution provides ten different color temperatures ranging from warm to cool white, which were used strategically in different areas to highlight the magnificent architecture of the mosque.
The Kocatepe Mosque is now beautifully illuminated with a variety of color temperatures and creates a safe and comfortable atmosphere for visitors at night. The new LED lighting highlights the structure and unique architecture of the mosque, making it an enjoyable place to be after dark. "While the Kocatepe Mosque was an inconvenient place to visit after dark, the new lighting design has made it an attractive and convenient building for residents and tourists to visit at night," said Dilara Gurkan, segment marketing manager of Signify Middle East and Turkey.
