Improving Daylight Qualities in Medelhavsmuseet

Abstract: The master’s thesis investigates daylight qualities and visitors’ perception in the central atriumof Medelhavsmuseet in Stockholm, Sweden. The investigation started from personal observationof the space where a feeling of darkness was experienced despite the existing skylight.The visitors’ perception of daylight and space were examined through a survey, and it wascompared to daylight simulations where it was proven that the museum’s daylight quality couldbe classified as a minimum. It is suspected that visitor perception of the space was consideredto be bright due to the use of artificial light, and the brightness of the prevailing weather conditionsduring the time of the survey (mid-April). The daylight conditions as per the survey andsimulations are considered to be sufficient if not a little muted during the lighter half of the year,but during the darker seasons, they are likely to be insufficient. Furthermore, it is proposed thatre-designing the skylight, changing the way the artwork is displayed or changing the materialof the skylight could drastically improve daylight quality, in turn benefiting visitor experience.