Light Fixtures and Interior Design: These Are a Few of My Favorite “Blings”

Published: February 7th, 2013

In interior design, if fabrics, finishes and furnishings are the beautiful “gowns” of a home, then light fixtures are the bling!  I’ve been having great fun these last few days selecting light fixtures for a current project:  a sleek, modern condominium in downtown Chicago.    The space demands a counterpoint to its  expansive, geometric dimensions.   The right light fixtures offer the perfect solution.

One of the central features I’ve designed for the space is a curved wall.   I began my search for fixtures by looking for curves that could extend this theme.  I was  thrilled when I found the “Galaxy” at Urban Archaelogy, a beautiful pendant fixture with a cut-out swirl pattern that’s a witty twist to conventional pendants.  It’s perfect for the foyer, whetting the appetite for what lies ahead.   Below are photos of both the pendant and wall sconce versions, the latter revealing a bit more of the swirl.

The organic nature of the “Galaxy” refines the theme of the curve.  When building on a theme, the challenge is to do so without looking obvious.  Matchy-matchy is flat and boring!

This led me to the next knockout piece of interior jewelry, the “Spin 30 Light Ceiling Mount,” courtesy of Lightology.  It’s swirling ribbons of stainless steel and randomly placed halogen bulbs add dimension to the theme of curves.  Positioned in the living room, the fixture  also mimics the stainless steel ribbons of the Frank Gehry-designed Pritzker Pavilion at Millenium Park, which the condominium overlooks.  Love that!

Finally, the“Logico Triple Linear” ceiling fixture by Artemide, planned for the kitchen that is open to the living room,  re-interprets curves with hand-blown glass and a satined finish.  The undulating shapes will play beautifully off the clean, modern lines of the cabinetry.

All three of these light fixtures share the organic swirl set in motion by the curved wall, but each is rendered in a different material that adds glamor and nuance to the decorative theme and counterpoint to the lean geometry of the home.  I’ll add more lighting for this project, of course, but these are definitely a few of my favorite blings!