In any space, lighting is crucial. It is incumbent for day-to-day functioning, and also has a strong influence on how a space will be perceived. If done the right way, lighting can uplift a design; if not, it can even make the most brilliant features sombre. Subtle but significant, lightning’s role in architecture has always been well-recognised. Architect Tadao Ando’s legacy is an irrefutable paragon. With interior design, the challenge is a little more classified. It is to make best of the available daylight and plan to optimise artificial lighting.
With climate change keeping us on our toes and energy consumption being a prime deciding factor for sustainability, it’s no wonder that awareness about lighting design has spiked in interior design. Although, intriguingly enough, this renaissance hasn’t necessarily translated to a surge in hiring lighting designers. Even so, lighting layouts aren’t the afterthoughts they used to be.
From left to right: Light Supplied by Truelux at Jubail Island Show Villa, Abu Dhabi; Photography Credits: The Oculis Project| Light Supplied by Abensal at Nourish Restaurant, Dubai by Abensal Lighting; Photography Credits: Chandan Sojitra Photography
“Lighting, especially decorative lighting, has become a statement piece in most of our recent projects”, David Vittes, General Manager at Skyelume reveals. “Interior designers have begun choosing their lighting almost at the same time as their furnishings and other decorative pieces.”
But, how has this contributed to a shift in the Lighting Design industry?
Skyelume, a lighting design and supply company, is known for their high-end restaurant and hospitality projects. To get a holistic projection of UAE’s lighting industry, we also spoke to its contemporaries—Truelux (represented by Nik Hewitt, Director of Projects) and Abensal (represented by Nathalie Abou Jaoude, Managing Partner). Here’s the trends and market gaps we stumbled upon…
‘Solid Control Philosophy’ on Accent Lights
LED Supremacy and DALI Rising
Accent (coming from ‘accentuate’) lighting is used to highlight a particular feature in a space (such as artwork, door frames). They are useful in curating contrasts and creating illusions of space.
According to Nathalie, the usual spotlights & track lighting are a hot choice, but only courtesy of magnetic tracks. These tracks are flexible and allow directing light to different areas. She also emphasises on the demand for the stalwart recessed lighting. “Recessed lights, installed in the ceiling, walls or floors, can create a wall-washing effect. The most in demand models are the ones without glare, either with a deep cone reflector or with anti-glare accessories,” she specifies.
Recessed Lighting at Nourish Restaurant, Dubai by Abensal Lighting; Photography Credits: Chandan Sojitra Photography
“Goes without saying that [today] accent lighting is nothing without a solid control philosophy.“
– David Vittes, General Manager at Skyelume
Nik, on the other hand, delves into more technologically robust products. He avers, “From a decorative standpoint, we are seeing a much more diverse range of outdoor battery-operated LED lights being requested and specified.” In his experience, the brand, &tradition is one that certainly checks all the boxes. “They have provided some great options for us that we supplied for our recent Address [Hotel] projects under Emaar”, he testifies.
The most significant development is the focus on DALI compatibility for in-room GRMS (Guest Room Management System) and lighting control. “The need is to create a simple, elegant and optimised design within hotels”, Nik mentions. Even David echoes the observation. “Goes without saying that [today] accent lighting is nothing without a solid control philosophy,” David opines.
In addition, David also mentions ambient lighting such as chandeliers, wall lights and simple table lamps being strategically doubled as accent lights.
“From a decorative standpoint, we are seeing a much more diverse range of outdoor battery-operated LED lights being requested and specified.“
– Nik Hewitt, Director of Projects, Truelux
Lamps Are In – Task Lighting of the Moment
Biding Overly Lit Spaces Adieu
Task Lighting are products that serve a particular purpose and provide direct illumination for enhanced visibility and comfort.
“The region is slowly moving on from previous bad trends of over-lighting spaces, especially in the workplace”, David is forth-coming. In the past, cost-cutting practices combined with ignorance about how lighting affects humans catapulted the region into a fad of overly-lit spaces. Regressive office designs with large open spaces also did not account for focused lighting plans.
“With these trends changing, tables and floors are becoming rampant. They allow maintaining focus on specific areas, while also opportuning a minimal and cleaner looking ceiling. We have also seen a big push on rechargeable lamps focused on the residential and hospitality sector,” he shares.
Table Lamps provided by Skyelume at The Arts Club, Dubai; Photography Credits: Ingrid Rasmussen
“The region is slowly moving on from previous bad trends of over-lighting spaces, especially in the workplace. We have also seen a big push on rechargeable lamps focused on the residential and hospitality sector.“
– David Vittes, General Manager at Skyelume
On the other hand, Nik reports a more stagnant trend. He says, “LED reading lights within hotel guestrooms are still the most specified task light in our projects.” But, a hurdle is combing for new models and developing new designs for rooms to stand out and not feel generic. “This is tricky as they are not typically high value items, so it is a less rewarding endeavour,” he admits.
Nathalie explains why LED reading lights are a steal. For starters, they can be supremely stylish—especially the ones recessed and mounted on the wall that cannot be removed or damaged easily by the guests. Similar reasons, even bestows pendant lights as a preferred specification choice. She says, “You can also play around with pendants—on each side of the bed or to make it more fun, a pendant on one side and a table lamp on the other. They are also often used over kitchen islands or dining tables for cooking, or eating.”
“LED reading lights within hotel guestrooms are still the most specified task light on our projects. Finding new models and developing new designs is critical for rooms to stand out and not feel generic. This is tricky as they are not typically high value items.“
– Nik Hewitt, Director of Projects, Truelux
A New Stylistic Focus
Custom Colour Finishes and Artisanal Choices
Vernacular design offers an edge-over mainstream products, something Nathatlie feels the UAE is not leveraging—in spite of the rise in more grounded, individualistic design styles. “Products that showcase the skill and craftsmanship of local artisans are highly valued, as they provide a sense of cultural identity and authenticity”, she comments.
Parallely, Nik has also noticed a shift in decor lighting for guest rooms. With design aesthetics taking a more pared back and minimalistic approach, the requests for focus for varied finishes has taken off. He shares, “We are seeing requests for much more high-end custom finishes such as cast brass and poured ceramic. These are a move away from products with customary powder coating or even PVD plating.”
“Products that showcase the skill and craftsmanship of local artisans are highly valued, as they provide a sense of cultural identity and authenticity.”
– Nathalie Abou Jaoude, Managing Partner, Abensal
Hospitality design is turning towards a more deliberate path in the region—where the focus is on details such as finishes and other intricate elements. “Understandably designers want finishes like gold, brass, and some of the new pastel colours”, David informs. “This can be troublesome for manufacturers to match, especially the more established brands. Some brands we work with do offer a great range of finishes and can match specific RAL colours (colour management system, originating in Germany). Still this is only a handful and sometimes limited to MOQs (Minimum order quantity) and project values.”
Light Supplied by Truelux at Nobu Restaurant, Dubai; Photography Credits: Brandon Barré Photography
“We are seeing requests for much more high-end custom finishes such as cast brass and poured ceramic. These are a move away from products with customary powder coating or even PVD plating.“
– Nik Hewitt, Director of Projects, Truelux
The Supply Gap in UAE Markets
The Future is Warmer and Greener
Nik has experienced a considerable shortfall for ‘beautifully designed, interior designer-level specified’ solar lighting in the region. Be it, LED lamps for indoors or lights for architectural applications, he perceives a potential market for solar-run products.
Nathalie, too, signals towards a growing need for ‘greener’ products, specifically one compliant with LEED. In addition, she also discerns a deficit in products integrated with home automation systems.
Another gap, David considers ‘obvious’ is the unavailability of a larger range of Correlated Colour Temperatures (CCTs). “While most brands offer customisation for larger value orders, there is a need for CCTs of 2200K and 2400K to be shown as standard no matter the size of the project”, David opines. “Currently we are designing four beach venues in the refurbishment of La Mer where 2200K and 2400K are a specific requirement. To our surprise many of our manufacturers are missing out [on this attribute].”
“We feel there is a huge shortfall and potential market for beautifully designed, Interior Design-level solar lighting.“
– Nik Hewitt, Director of Projects, Truelux
He has also seen a burgeoning trend amongst designers—to use a combination of light colours for which the current market is unprepared. “There are very limited options for tunable indoor and outdoor lights in the market—limited to a few brands and even more limited to a few light families”, he makes known. He foresees a future where tunable lights with warmer tones are must-have essential products for a brand/manufacturer.
Light Supplied by Skyelume at Brau Store, Dubai; Photography Credits: Natelee Cocks Photography
“Currently we are designing four beach venues in the refurbishment of La Mer where 2200K and 2400K are a specific requirement. To our surprise many of our manufacturers are missing out [on this attribute]. There are also very limited options for tunable indoor and outdoor lights in the market—limited to a few brands and even more limited to a few light families.“
– David Vittes, General Manager at Skyelume
Essentials for the Middle East
Hot in the UAE: Heat Resistance
With COP28 scheduled at the end of the year, the UAE construction has seen a steep rise in demand for Energy Efficiency. Hence, sustainable and energy conserving products are an uncompromised requirement in the region. Apart from that, the professionals also pointed out other niches.
Gear Up for COP28, Read: What COP27’s Loss and Damage fund means for Architecture & Interior Design
To Nik, heat and humidity resistance is an attribute synonymous with UAE. “It will always be a critical requirement for quality custom built and branded lighting in the Middle East, especially within the hospitality sector,” he says.
“Corrosion resistance is crucial for outdoor lights in coastal regions. IP rating should be IP65 at the minimum.”
– Nathalie Abou Jaoude, Managing Partner, Abensal
From left to right: Light Supplied by Truelux at The Address Harbour Point, Dubai; Photography Credits: Alex Jeffries Photography Group| Light Supplied by Abensal at Wellth Clinic, Dubai; Photography Credits: Ruksana Hussain
The climatic conditions also call for special outdoor fitting. Nathalie weighs in, “Corrosion resistance is crucial for outdoor lights in coastal regions. IP rating should be IP65 at the minimum.” Outdoor light fixtures, for the UAE, should be made from high quality material for fixtures to withstand daily temperature fluctuations (between day and night). The design of the lighting should also minimise light spillage and upward glare to combat light pollution.
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Date added:
23 August, 2023
