Bright Ideas | Lighting Designers Discuss Lighting Trends

Robert Singer likes to call himself “the George Washington” of the lighting design profession. Having launched his career in New York in 1981, Singer’s work is featured in ICONIC spots like Studio 54 and the Ralph Lauren store. “I studied theatrical lighting,” he says. “Back in my day, nobody offered degrees in lighting design.”

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In the early 1990s, Singer flipped the switch in his business plan from commercial to residential lighting, moved to Aspen, Colo., and focused on ultra-high-end homes, like a residence he did for Holly Hunt, which recently sold for $70 million. With a staff of seven—including five lighting designers who are members of the International Association of Lighting Designers—and additional offices in Paradise Valley, Ariz., and San Diego, Calif., Singer oversees some 75 projects at a time across the country.

“As lighting designers, we are primarily educators,” says Singer. “We work with architects, builders, interior designers and homeowners. Over the years, the base concepts of lighting design have not changed, but the tools have. We are still sculpting a space with light.”

Another pioneer in the lighting world is Justin Worley. Worley founded Oasis Luxury Smart Homes in 2011 in Scottsdale, Ariz., after about 12 years in the home theater business. Now with 42 employees and a second location in Orange County, Calif., his firm offers lighting design, home automation, security, audio-video services, and even motorized shades for the high-end residential market. “Our staff members have different certifications, including electrical licenses in Arizona and California,” says Worley. “We design, install and implement. Our clients don’t have to use multiple contractors to complete the job.”

Like Singer, Worley concurs that, as lighting designers, members of his company are all about imparting knowledge. “Educating a client about all the options in lighting before construction starts is the way to avoid mistakes,” he says. “You need a detailed plan—you can’t just figure it out as you go along.” Lighting design, he notes, has changed. “Just a few years ago, having a few can lights and dimmers was okay. Now you’re working with sophisticated lighting and control systems that can set scenes for various rooms and times.”

With an engineering background, our next lighting expert, Kevin Flower, learned lighting design from Walter Spitz of Creative Designs in Lighting in Phoenix before launching his own Phoenix-based firm. Flower has developed a portfolio of high-end residential projects, working on up to 100 residences per year with well-known architects and builders like Arizona’s PHX Architecture, Drewett Works, Swaback Architects, and Salcito Custom Homes. With his team of four, Flower has also illuminated country clubs, wineries and restaurants, such as Scottsdale’s Maple & Ash, SumoMaya and Caymus Vineyards in Napa.

“We’re the secret ingredient in a home or commercial space,” says Flower. “We make everyone and everything look good. Mood is the biggest reason people hire a lighting designer because they want to feel comfortable in their spaces.” Today, he finds that it’s all about LED lighting and making the controls more straightforward for the end user to navigate. “The hardware now is smaller and more efficient. I tell clients, if they can think it up, we can do it.”

Regarding trends, Singer says linear lighting is the “product of the moment,” referring to narrow strips of LED lights that can be tucked into a slot in the ceiling, floor or wall, creating even washes of up or down lighting. The new product is part of his arsenal of lighting products and techniques that layer illumination in a space. “You need different light levels to create magic,” Singer remarks. “Lighting shouldn’t be obvious, though. It should be felt, but it should not be the star component.”

Worley also likes to incorporate linear lighting in his projects, often setting it flush into drywall with a diffuser. “We’ve used the strips down a wall, too, for a modern look,” he says.

Flower also uses linear lighting as an option in his approach to lighting design and agrees that most fixtures need to be inconspicuous. “We try to keep light sources concealed as much as possible.”

This brings up the question of today’s trend of installing eye-catching pendants above a kitchen island or a spectacular, sculptural chandelier in an entryway or above a dining table. “Chandeliers and decorative lights like sconces are great, but they really are not great light sources. You need to supplement the lighting to make it work,” Flower remarks.

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Singer points out that decorative light fixtures are usually part of a designer’s “fingerprint,” a special touch. “We like to collaborate with the designer to make sure the decorative fixture works in the space and with other products that provide adequate lighting,” he says. ”We usually create the illusion that the light comes from that decorative fixture.”

Worley has even reworked pendants and fixtures. “The light output is often horrible from things like hanging pendants,” he notes. “We’ve taken them apart to make the color temperature tunable.”

Another trend in lighting is installing systems that mimic circadian rhythms—in other words, lighting that aligns with daybreak, morning, midday, afternoon and evening light. “It’s a hot-button item,” admits Flower, who has had a few requests for this kind of lighting. “To be perfectly honest, you don’t need it in sunny climates like Arizona and in houses with many windows because daylight does this naturally. If you have a dark house and do want this, I recommend doing the whole house, not just one or two rooms. The lighting’s color temperature needs to match from room to room.”

Lighting controls are another touchpoint the designers address. They all agree they try to make the systems—accessed via keypad, smartphone or device—as simple as possible for the homeowners. Singer has gone so far as to have keypads designed to match the interior design theme, using natural materials that patina with age for one Mid-Century Modern house in Los Angeles.

Worley likes to build “foolproof” systems that function regardless of whether the internet is working. Flower points out that some homeowners can customize their light levels and scenes. “Most people, though, want us to set the scenes and the focus,” he says. And then, they don’t touch it.”

All three lighting experts have done their share of spectacular homes, creating interest, comfort and drama inside and out, each with a unique approach to a project. But they all agree that if a client invests in a new home or a significant renovation, lighting design should be part of the mix. Flower summarizes it best: “If you want your home to look like it’s supposed to look, hire a lighting designer.”