(UK) – In November 2023, LiGHT, the UK’s only light specification show, made a dazzling return to London presenting an unparalleled showcase of innovation in lighting design. Drawing a diverse audience from the design community, the event unveiled an array of products, insightful talks programme and networking gatherings, with an augmentation to decorative lighting sector. The new darc space decorative areasaw high-end lighting brands for the interiors market exhibit in this space for the first time – names such as Empty State, Marset, Nexia, Artemide, Ebb & Flow, Lodes, and Quasar to name but a few. The Business Design Centre was teeming with talent, making it challenging for us at darc to narrow down the highlights of the show. Therefore, we enlisted the expertise of several designers, asking them to leverage their discerning taste and give insight to the darc readers on what they saw.

Krishna Mistry, Lighting Designer and Founder of Mistry Lighting, shared her favourite product from the show: “The Stellar Nebula caught my eye; I love the organic shape and the way the glass interacts with the light. I can see it working very well within a double height central London apartment we are currently working on to create a statement feature using a cluster of different sized pendants suspended as different heights.”

Italian company, Artemide, makes its Stellar Nebular family of lamps through artisanal glass blowing techniques before being shaped by hand by master glass makers. This process ensures the “organic” quality that Mistry was captured by, with each lamp being a slightly unique crafted piece. After each lamp is shaped it is coated with a sustainable dichroic finish. This creates not only a protective coat but leaves beautiful rainbow refractions as light permeates the glass. The hanging pendant that was displayed during LiGHT 23 suspended on delicate wires, creating a beautiful scene like bubbles floating in the sky. As Mistry pointed out, it’s the perfect versatile product, with a range of sizes and lengths of its product allow it to be suitable for various ceiling suspensions – as well as being a brand with a sustainable edge.

Follow the link to view product www.artemide.com

Darren Orrow, Director and Lighting Designer at into lighting, gave his highlight that collided two realms of light, that are architectural and decorative. Orrow said: “As architectural lighting designers it is often difficult to accurately represent decorative lighting in our light calculations as there may be no LDT or IES files. I was impressed to see that Franklite have their own photometer, spectrometer and a Rigo 801-1500 near-field Goniophotometer – a cutting edge device used for measurement of light emitted from an object at different angles. So, we can now use their photometric data in ELUMDAT (.ldt) and IESNA (.ies) formats in our lux calculations.”

Franklite showcased in-house technology such as the Rigo Near-Field Goniophotometer, LED plates and award-winning tuneable lighting engines that demonstrated the smooth transitions from cool to warm at their LiGHT 23 exhibit stand. Franklite’s stand not only exemplified the brand’s commitment to optimal performance but also featured a striking balance of aesthetics. The demonstration of smooth transitions from cool to warm light using their tuneable lighting display was a standout, mirroring the brand’s dedication to both functionality and beauty. Exclusive decorative pieces previewed for the upcoming year included a finely detailed crystal chandelier with a halo structure and modern wall lamps in circular shapes; the latter diffused light in a manner reminiscent of an eclipse.

Follow the link to view product www.franklite.co.uk

Marcus Steffan, director of MS Lighting, chose LYM’s Halley table lights, he said: “The floor standing and table reading lights were really interesting with their simple design but also working by plugging into a USB port. This opens up lots of opportunities for flexible use, even powering them from battery packs, which can be great for temporary setups.”

Hailing from Sacile in North Eastern Italy, LYM displayed its Hally range designed with practicality and performance with clean and minimal design in mind. The table lamp, that doubles up as a bedside table lamp, and half-floor lamp is equipped with a luminous projector-like diffusion, that emits 25-degree beam of light. The floor lamp has a special touch control feature that goes all along the lamp’s stem therefore avoiding the interference of keyboards. The Halley range was an apt choice for anyone searching for a more contemporary design with seamless blend of functionality and stylish lighting solution.

Follow the link to view product www.LYM.com

Stephanie Dias, Interior Designer, and member of BIID gave her highlight spot to Lodes’ Random globe pendant display, she said: “I really like the impressive installation made by Lodes with designer Chia-Ying Lee. I believe they are a relatively new brand, but I was captivated by the synergy between the form of the globes and the various finishes used. I am confident that this chandelier would be a great addition to our projects.” The second Italian brand that made the spotlight, Lodes, which kept its exhibit stand simple yet eye-catching. On its stand, Lodes showcased a creative arrangement of pendants, suspending a cluster of globes at different heights to create spiralling shapes in the air. This transitioned seamlessly into its three shade finishes – clear, opal and smoked. The various finishes and full customisation were a brilliant spot from Dias as it can be utilised for residential projects or larger installations for spaces with double height ceilings.

Follow the link to view product www.lodes.com

The London-based expo LiGHT 24 will be returning next year for its third instalment after its successful second record breaking edition.. If you are a decorative supplier interested in exhibiting, contact jp.etchells@mondiale.co.uk.

www.lightexpolondon.com