The AW24 Lighting Report
With a raft of new lighting products launching at Focus/24, and two newly opened showrooms with a strong lighting offering (Tom Raffield and Hamilton), it’s an apt time to shine a spotlight on this key ingredient of any design scheme. Lighting’s blend of technology, functionality, innovation, design and materials always makes it a fascinating subject, and Focus/24 saw experts come together – from product designers to interior designers and specialist lighting designers – to dispense sound advice and share the latest launches. Read on for more.
Freedom from wires
Portable, rechargeable lights are hitting their stride: Hector Finch’s Emma Finch says that they are “undoubtedly the biggest trend in lighting today”. New showroom Tom Raffield’s Skipper collection includes wire-free table lights and even wall lights (pictured above), opening up the possibility of installing lighting without the need of a professional, or being able to take lighting outside for an evening. Tom Raffield says that portable products “have shown us how even slight changes – like making designs cordless – can completely transform daily routines.”
Rooted in tradition
The wider ‘Hooked on Classics’ design direction for Focus/24 – rooted in a classical approach but with a modern twist – shows itself in lighting, too. Hector Finch has identified a demand for “designs that echo late 19th century early electric light fittings, brought up to date and simplified for the contemporary interior,” according to Emma Finch, with a dramatic hanging light produced in partnership with the Sir John Soane Museum a standout new launch, alongside the ‘Astor’ dish light (above left) inspired by neoclassical design, with an acid-etched glass dish and optional Greek key pattern around its brass ring. Vaughan has also introduced some new classics, including the ‘Corfe’ chandelier, made from steel and iron with a rust-effect patina (above right), and the ‘Kimmeridge’ chandelier, inspired by an Italian 1970s original.
Forbes & Lomax’s Charlotte Hawthorn says that “many people like to use the latest smart lighting systems, but wish to retain the timeless, elegant look of a classic brass light switch,” citing the brand’s Momentary collection as ideal for this purpose.
Warm minimalism
Materials such as brass, stone, timber and alabaster are being used in a pared-back way to amplify the beauty of materials. The faceted surface of Tigermoth Lighting’s new ‘Surface’ table lamp (above left) catches the light in a way that accentuates every crisp line, while Tom Raffield’s ‘Sakura’ pendant (above right) features delicate spokes of timber radiating from a central ring.
Showrooms are reporting that, more than any other material, alabaster has seen a surge in popularity. Richard Smith, Vaughan’s product development design lead, is a fan: “Every piece is unique, with variance in veining and translucency. There’s a real beauty in the essence of the material.” Look out for its new ‘Langley’ alabaster and brass pendant in the showroom. Bella Figura recently worked with interior designer Olga Ashby on a series of bespoke lights, designed by Ashby for a project in Paris, where perfect spheres of alabaster are stacked inside a glass shade, backed by marble.
A friendly wave
Original BTC’s director Charlie Bowles pinpointed that “soft wavy lines” were having a moment, as part of a conversation with House & Garden‘s Olivia Capaldi in the showroom at Focus/24. The brand recently expanded its ruffle-edged Christie collection to include a smaller pendant (ideal for illuminating shelving and cabinets) and a wall light (above) that emits a delicate halo of light. They’re made from bone china, which Original BTC’s founder Peter Bowles was the first to utilise for lighting in 1992 (it now has its own Stoke-on-Trent factory). “It’s a lovely warm material. Porcelain gives a slightly grey light, but bone china is warm and soft,” said Charlie Bowles at the showroom talk.
There are more waves to be found elsewhere: David Hunt Lighting’s new, quaintly named ‘Ethel’ and ‘Mabel’ lights give a clue as to their vintage-style aesthetic. ‘Ethel’ (above left) features a ‘handkerchief’ shade in three stained-glass colours (azalea, moss and tobacco) as well as clear; the wall light version has a adjustable knuckle, making it ideal for bedsides or to illuminate kitchen countertops. ‘Mabel’, meanwhile, is a dome of glass with a pretty scalloped edge, available in the same colours.
If you like your ruffles with a degree of refinement, head to Bella Figura, where the ‘Starburst’ wall light (above right) has a deco-inspired fan-shaped glass shade, radiating out from a brass central point, available in clear or opaque glass.
Take control
Functionality and ease of use will always be on the agenda, something that the showrooms are readily responding to. Head to new switch and socket showroom Hamilton to see its range of smart controls. Features that only used to be possible with a wired-in system are now available wirelessly, including multi-point dimming, away-from-home control and compatibility with Alexa and Google Home – with no hub required.
Similarly, Forbes & Lomax’s AW24 launch is its ‘Smart Wi-Fi Rotary Dimmer’, which can easily replace a conventional dimmer with no additional wiring, and be operated via smartphone or app.
Meanwhile, functional task lighting comes under the spotlight, too: Hector Finch is introducing the ‘Dido Mini’ wall light, a smaller version of an existing design that can be used over a work surface or as a picture light.
Expert advice
Interior designers and other experts offered lighting advice across multiple events at Focus/24. “Lighting is being thought about much further in advance now, not left to the last minute,” pointed out Charlie Bowles at Original BTC’s talk, a reflection on just how important this element of a design scheme has become.
Vaughan hosted a panel discussion on decorative versus architectural lighting, exploring the merits of each. On the decorative side, “they really do bring a sculptural element to an interiors. We sell that to clients as important, and believe it,” said Turner Pocock’s Emma Pocock. Vaughan’s latest Stockbridge collection is full of such examples, including the ‘Milland’ table lamp, created using lost-wax casting to preserve all the detail of its vortex-like design.
Other new, highly sculptural pieces include Bella Figura’s ‘Spector’ and ‘Strobe’ (above left) chandeliers from the Anima collection, inspired by energy and motion, bringing dynamism to design schemes; while Arteriors has created new larger versions of some of its showstoppers, including the fringed, drum-shaped ‘Dutchess’. Porta Romana’s latest releases feature dramatic, exaggerated shapes, from the ‘Moons’ table lamp (above right), inspired by the work of Picasso, to the bulbous ‘Lucille’ table lamp, a tribute to the talents of Porta Romana’s glassmakers. And Gallotti&Radice celebrates the 10th anniversary of one of its most sculptural collections, Bolle, by reinterpreting its bubble-like spheres of hand-blown glass in new colours including topazio (above centre).
At the Vaughan talk, Pocock went on to say that using a lighting designer is “worth its weight in gold. They key thing is for you to do your design first, before they take over, so they see what you’ve got already, and done overwhelm it.” Her fellow panellist Jo Mann of Light House Designs is one such specialist, and she outlined the amazing advances that invisible architectural lighting had made: “The lights you can put in a bookshelf are as small as a fingernail; you can hide them incredibly well.” Good lighting is “having the confidence to do just enough,” she said. Interior designer Sarah Peake of Studio Peake had some good advice for what to do when you inherit a project that features harsh, unwelcome spotlights all over the ceiling, but the budget doesn’t stretch to ripping them out and starting again. “Change it to directional lighting, make it dimmable, and concentrate on layering the light elsewhere. Small changes can make a big difference,” she said.
Focus/24 also hosted a Design Discovery Tour that was all about lighting. Visitors were guided around some of the showrooms to hear first hand what was new, with friendly advice along the way about the key ingredients for a beautiful, hardworking lighting scheme.
Arteriors, Second Floor, Design Centre East
Bella Figura, Ground Floor, Centre Dome
Gallotti&Radice, Second Floor, Centre Dome
Forbes & Lomax, First Floor, Design Centre East
Hamilton, Third Floor, North Dome
Hector Finch, Third Floor, Design Centre East
Original BTC, Second Floor, Centre Dome
Porta Romana, Ground Floor, Centre & South Domes
Tigermoth Lighting, Second Floor, Design Centre East
Tom Raffield, First Floor, Design Centre East
Vaughan, Ground Floor, Design Centre East
