With the advances in product design and development as well as in technology, the art of lighting spaces has gone from the mundane to the exotic. Lighting can now enhance a space not just with lamps and light to see by, but with strikingly unusual and often very colourful and exciting effect.

Lighting is one of the tools used by designers to create a certain mood or atmosphere. Using a combination of each type of lighting one can make an average room spectacular. Lighting can disguise flaws, enhance colour schemes and even visually adjust the size of a room.

Whatever the use of a room, effective use of lighting is an important part of the ambiance of the room. Interior lighting is either General, Task or Accent Lighting:

General Lighting is glare-free, indirect lighting that bounces off walls and ceilings, providing comfortable background illumination. General lighting ensures safety and allows safe and easy movement around a room.

Task Lighting delivers essential illumination for specific jobs: reading, writing, cooking, grooming…. It is confined to a small area, shadow-free and easy on the eye.

Accent Lighting is purely decorative and creatively planned using a combination of sources, such as sconces, uplights or downlights. Decorative fixtures focus the light on the appealing aspects of the room: your artwork, vignettes, or architecture. Decorative fixtures are sometimes the central focal point of a room. Chandeliers and lamps designed with stained glass are excellent examples.

Good lighting design uses decorative fixtures to enhance the overall interior design while blending the quality and quantity of light to enhance the space. Consideration is also given to energy efficiency and the use of well-placed switching and dimming tools to help create scenes in lighting design.

interiorsbydesign@cwjamaica.com