Light Is Not the Final Step in a Project

How much can an artwork change when the light changes?

These two images show the same space, the same materials and the same artwork.The only difference is the way light meets the surface.

In the first image, the light is softer and more frontal. The texture is perceived more evenly, the colours are more present, and the artwork maintains a balanced relationship with the marble, wood and neutral tones of the interior.

In the second, the light comes from above and grazes the surface.

Something different happens.

The raised areas catch the light, while others remain in shadow. The texture gains depth, and the perception of the artwork changes throughout the day.

This is one of the aspects I consider when thinking about an artwork for a space: I don’t just look at where it will be placed. I look at where the light will come from.

Because a textured surface does not respond to light in the same way as a flat one.

This means that lighting, placement and material cannot be treated as completely separate decisions.

I was recently interested in the work of lighting designer Nathan Orsman. In a Hamptons project featured in Wallpaper*, light is approached as a genuine design material: not something added once the architecture and interiors have already been defined, but an element capable of changing our perception of surfaces, volumes and materials.

It is an approach that feels very close to the way I work.

When I enter a space, I look at the wall, of course. But immediately afterwards, I look at the windows, the orientation, the light sources, the shadows and what will happen to that surface when evening comes.

Sometimes, simply changing the direction of the light reveals a detail we had barely noticed before.

The images above are a small simulation of this principle.

There is not necessarily a “better” light between the two.

There is the light that is more appropriate for what we want to happen within the space.

And whenever possible, I prefer this to be considered as part of the project, rather than afterwards.

Further reading: Lighting designer Nathan Orsman illuminates a garage in the Hamptons with cinematic glare — Wallpaper*, 18 August 2026.Read the original article on Wallpaper*

Frontal Light

Grazing Light