Let There Be Light
18 February 2021
Illuminating us about the latest trends in the lighting market.
Emily Tobin
Emily Tobin joined House & Garden ten years ago and has been there ever since. She was arts and features editor until last year when she launched and became creative director of The Calico Club - the magazine's cultural events programme. She currently hosts weekly online talks on all things design.
William Hogarth, Four Times of the Day: Night, 1738.
Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Night is the final plate in a set of four prints entitled Times of Day, derived from paintings made by William Hogarth. The scene depicts a chaotic reminder of life without light; a house fire billows into the sky, a coach rolls into a bonfire and a chamber pot is emptied over the head of a passerby. For most of human history the task of lighting our homes was a laborious, if not dangerous process. For the majority, fires, candles and moonlight were the most reliable sources of illumination and our houses were designed with that in mind. Antique dealer, Adam Bentley says that the ‘candle is seeing a rise in popularity, especially when it comes to chandeliers. After all antiques were designed to be seen in candle light so the decoration, be it carving, gilding, inlay or ormolu mounts, were alliterated to catch the light and throw it around the room, an effect that is rarely achieved with electric lighting’. Patrick Sandberg notes that converted bronze and ormolu candlesticks are proving popular with the interior design trade at the moment too.
Unusual Italian gilded iron chandelier, H: 82.5 cm, D: 82.5 cm, 1940s/50s.
Image courtesy of Adam Calvert Bentley.
Between the mid 19th and mid 20th centuries the world experienced extraordinary technical advances, moving from the Gilded Age to the Space Age. During that period there were more developments in lighting than there had been in all of history and it is largely within this timeframe that some of the greatest lighting designers emerged.
William Arthur Smith Benson was one of the leading lighting manufacturers of his age. With the encouragement of William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones, in 1880 he set up a metal workshop in Hammersmith from which he produced beautifully designed, utilitarian metalwork. Benson often advised on lighting schemes in churches and public buildings including St Paul’s Cathedral and colleges at Oxford and Cambridge universities. His innovative lighting designs, which are known for their elegant forms and graceful curves, went on to provide the template for much of the metalwork produced at that time, he also campaigned with the National Exhibition of the Arts for ‘crafts’ to be exhibited as an art form which led to the formation of the Arts and Crafts movement. But as with most things Victorian, Benson’s aesthetic fell out of favour. Twenty years ago his lights were fetching as little as £200 at auction but as interest in the Arts and Crafts movement sees a resurgence so too do the prices rise. One of his copper ceiling lights fetched £3,250 at auction in 2019.
The 20th century saw some of the most inventive examples of lighting design particularly by manufacturers in Italy such as Stilnovo, Arredoluce and Fontana Arte. In December 2020 at a design sale at Phillips, New York, a Stilnovo ceiling light made in 1959 whipped past its estimate of $10,000 to sell for $50,400; a pair of adjustable wall lights by the same manufacturer reached $60,480 - they too were given an estimate of $10,000. Similarly pieces by Arredoluce were fetching significantly more than predicted. There is a phrase in interior design that is often rolled out: think of lighting as jewellery, choose well and it has the power to elevate a room. Designs produced in Italy during this period fit the bill perfectly: elegant, original and ever so slightly decadent. In close collaboration with craftsmen in Murano, Italian designers and manufacturers were elevating lighting design to an art form.
Pair of Regency period bronze and ormolu triform candlestick lamps, circa 1830.
Image courtesy of Patrick Sandberg Antiques.
Danish architect Poul Henningsen is another designer whose prices have leapt over the last decade. Like his Italian counterparts he was also implementing new theories to lighting design. It was his belief that direct light from the source should never be visible. He used layered shades in varying colours, materials and positions to spread the light while obscuring the bulb thereby softening the glow to something more akin to that of an oil lamp. In fact it was the designer’s mother who, displeased with the new incandescent bulbs of the time, gave her son the inspiration to create a more flattering source of light. This glare free design would become a signature characteristic of his work.
And really, this is what it boils down to. Quality of light is key. It is worth keeping in mind that while pale marble and white paint may reflect up to 80% of a room’s light, dark mahogany and red will only reflect around 20%. Similarly a white lampshade will cast a stark light, so perhaps consider a cream shade instead or something lined in pink. It's all very well choosing a beautiful design but if it doesn’t cast the right light or create a sense of atmosphere then steer clear because of course, light is really the most important material in our homes - furniture, fabric, paint, humans all rely on flattering, functional lighting to look and feel their very best.
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