Brise Soleil has been an architectural feature of buildings for longer than most people are aware. We take a brief look at the evolution of adding shade to buildings.
Origins of Brise Soleil
Brise Soleil is thought to be at least as old as the Ancient period. In fact, there’s evidence of moveable canopy shading at Rome’s Colosseum to protect spectators in the hottest part of the day. For the next 2000 years, as architects and planners tried to balance aesthetics with practicality, Brise Soleil evolved.
Development of Brise Soleil
It wasn’t until the 1930’s when an architect named Le Corbusier coined the name ‘Brise Soleil’, quite literally meaning ‘broken sun’. He started to use it in concrete form on modern multi-storey buildings in a way that ensured maximum heat and light in the morning and evening, but reduced heat and light during the hottest parts of the day. His use of it on major projects such as the Palace of Assembly in India led to its popularity around the world
Brise Soliel Today
Today, you’ll see innovative shading, like that at the Al Bahar Towers in Abu Dhabi. They feature responsive shading that moves with the position of the sun, for which it won an inaugural facade award
But it’s not just found on landmark buildings, companies such as https://alusystems.uk/brise-soleil-solar-shading provide a range of Brise Soleil products for homeowners, including bespoke options.
Adding shading features to buildings has been around for many thousands of years, and it has come a long way. Today’s options often blend sleek aesthetics with technical innovation.