an easy way to make a room divider is by back lighting glass or any other translucent material

While working with an architect on a gut renovation, I wanted to bring the light from the entry hallway to light the back wall of the bath area. Conversely the wall of translucent stone could illuminate the entryway when only the bathroom was lit.

We can play with translucent surfaces to magnify the ambient light both from the front and behind.

modern building material

mirror, light, and crystal work their magic

Work AC brings light in through the stairwell with a mirror that focuses its reflection on  guardrails laced with SWAROVSKI CRYSTALS at DVF headquarters, NYC. The combination of light and glass  results in magic.

Frank Lloyd Wright incorporated skylights into the eaves of his residential building. He also placed them in his soaring but narrow high-ceilinged bathrooms.

This is an easy and eco friendly solution to bringing natural light into a dark interior - if your room has roof access, Solatube.

 WE are DOWN with DOWN LIGHTING

In a residential setting the most unimaginative and harsh lighting has to be pocket ceiling lights. I understand that they attempt to evenly illuminate a room. But at what cost? The lighting fixture is installed into a hollow opening in the ceiling. In older structures beautifully molded ceilings have to be eradicated or “dropped” to accommodate these fixtures.

These lights which go by different names - recessed accent lighting, pot lights and down lights are some of the most offensive lighting on the market. Considered revolutionary for their time, designers have been moving away from them in favor of more serene solutions.

These lights can’t help but cast an unattractive scalloped light and shadow on the walls. To avoid these pools of light, the designer and installer should be aware of how close to space the fixtures as well as the ratio of distance from the wall to ceiling height. If not, they look like this. Dare we be more creative? 

Unless performing a medical procedure (okay, maaaybe for kitchen prep), or lighting artwork. Or if you just can’t live without them, then they can be put on dimmers. For a softer more soothing alternative and a sense of zoned contrast try these: a strip of lighting discretely placed under the kitchen cabinets, or over the cabinets if you have the space between the cabinets and ceiling, living room wall sconces, floor lamps, table task lighting, or ceiling chandeliers. 

If you’re lighting a counter for food prep in the kitchen, this can easily be accomplished with under the counter lights. Here is a place I used them, bringing a warm ambiance to the food prep area. 

A shot from the under side shows the simplicity of the design - with lights off and on. Now that LED strips are used, they don’t generate heat and use less electricity than these bulbs. 

Par cans light artwork and foliage. Because this interior was designed by the über talented architect, Paul Rudolph, it holds its own today - some 35+ years later. This is because he used track lighting to create drama.