I have been studying and talking about trends for many years. I have repeatedly indicated that trends, as they relate to lighting are influenced by four factors, architecture, related residential industries, socioeconomic trends and fashion. While most folks will buy the first three, I am often questioned about how pleated pants and gold lame gowns could possibly impact chandeliers. Suffice to say, it is a bit more esoteric.
Unlike a lot of guys, I have been reading the fashion pages of newspapers for a long time. I started with the local Cleveland newspaper, The Plain Dealer. Like most major metropolitan dailies, they sent their fashion editor to Paris and New York to cover the seasonal previews. The original editor was hilarious and adroit, fully cognizant of the fact that she was reporting on a sliver of culture that barely touched the average Cleveland reader. When she retired, she was replaced with an equally deft observant of this peculiar ritual. Because this was in the era when I was supervising an engineering department and not yet working to educate the design community, I read these articles primarily because they were so well written and so filled with wit. I suspect, I didn’t notice how insightful the hidden observation could be, beyond dresses and suits.
Of course, The Plain Dealer, like scores of other local dailies long ago suspended their fashion coverage. (Cleveland’s last editor opened a fine fashion store in a trendy area and continued her success elsewhere.) I then began to read the New York Times and their fashion section. The editor, Vanessa Friedman is a consummate observer of the industry, but nowhere near as irreverent as the two Cleveland editors. Nonetheless, I still regularly glean information. As I write this, I have five articles, torn from the printed edition over three months, with ragged notes jotted in the margins.
Like so many people, you may ask, “How does this relate to lighting?” let me recap a few articles with my thoughts, pulled from those cryptic notes. (No particular order.)
John Galliano is experiencing a renaissance and will soon develop a line for fast-fashion leader, Zara. Describing the approach, which is neither inexpensive, or high-end, the NY Times stated, “It is, in other words, not exactly fast, nor cheap, nor rooted in trends (and thus disposable,) Instead, it is sort of an in-between, offering which has been missing from fashion for a while, as high-end brands have chased the luxury consumer via increasingly exorbitant prices and ultra-fast fashion competitors raced one another to the bottom.”
Summing up the summer Paris shows, an article was ended with an interesting conundrum, “And this is the choice shoppers increasingly face: between the grass roots and the grandiose, the personal and the imperial; between brands imbedded in the everyday and brands that build their own reality. That may be the biggest trend of the season….”
I like these observations. So many manufacturers are fighting a price battle, there must be an alternative. That is the approach I see taken by Hinkley. There is a sweet spot between well-priced and fashion forward and they may have found it. The same demons fight in the fashion world and it looks like both industries are coming to a nice answer.
Men have increasingly been experimenting with makeup and fashion consultants. (“She Has a Feel for Making Masculine Men Look Pretty”) This new tack for men is a brave new world. Perhaps not for your dad, but younger guys are discovering and realizing an expert can add to their outward look. Makeup and stylists have not been widely used previously, especially in the cis community, but it is growing.
The June 2026 recaps of the new menswear season detailed leather, pants under skirts, day bags, sailor hats and plenty of pink and bright yellow, in a multi-page spread entitled, “Something is Changing on Europe’s Runways.” What is deemed “acceptable” for men and masculinity is also expanding.
Can we relate this to the growing value of a lighting designer, or even good lighting in general? Sure, it is a niche market today, but it could be bigger tomorrow. As more homeowners take added pride in their home and seek to add increased value to the residence, an expert in a field heretofore ignored could become as common as men in skirts, carrying bags, both in bold colors and prints.
The recap of the Jean Paul Gaultier and Viktor&Rolf July women’s shows, was filled with observations of affordability. “…the customer seems beside the point.” The influence of influencers and marketing. “There are only a handful of individuals who can buy clothes as expensive as couture pieces, but there are so many millions more who can see them and comment. It’s possible they matter more.” The use of simultaneous young and older runway models was explained, “It was smartphone catnip of the most obvious kind.” Perhaps the most obvious for lighting folks was, “…LED lights sewn into the lining of a skirt dripping in pearlescent bugle beads to create an actual glow from within.” Surely, someone came to my LED Tape product introduction meeting fifteen years ago, where I wore an LED lined sport jacket! All of these points can be connected to running a successful lighting business and thinking beyond what we’ve “always done.”
There are huge dollars invested in the chase for fashion. Lighting is a fashion business. We should always see what they have to say. You never know when it will roll over into the lighting world. And not just the easy moments, like LED lined clothes.
As I try to wrap my thoughts around all of the things I saw in New York and on the ICFF show floor, I wondered if there is a theme, a common thread that might tie new products to birth in 2024. I suspect that might be too easy. There are far too many creative ideas and this is a worldwide showcase. One thing did come up, time and again and it is a movement with which I have had some struggles. Sustainability is something we all know is needed. It is a direction we all know we must follow, but it runs counter to so much of what we do as creators of interesting, unique and personal interiors. I’ve asked this question before and will probably ask it again. “Can design, trends and sustainability coexist?” I’m no closer to an answer, but I have more fuel for the argument.
New York 2024 – Kirna Zabete window
Upon seeing the showrooms, stores and galleries of SOHO, the dichotomy couldn’t be stronger. In one short section of a block, the fashion industry was having this same battle. The Kirna Zabete window featured bold, funky “Maxi” dresses that are sure to have a short shelf life, while across the street, the Marni storefront showed simple and clean blue and white suits, designs that could easily transition trends and time. Likewise, the Simkhai showroom next door and Lavin, two-doors down kept it simple and stately. A few more steps and the Mango showroom, a new fast-fashion brand who makes trendy product quickly and offered it for less money pulled us back to a typical merry-go-round of fashion retailer.
New York 2024 – Lanvin windowNew York 2024 – Marni windowNew York 2024 – Simkhai window
I think the fashion industry is wrestling with itself on this topic. For the average consumer who has moved into a type of American Mao Suit of jeans, sneakers and tees, the question is moot. They have already established a de facto sustainability. This further begs the question, “Can fashion survive?” North Americans are, however a much more quantitative based consumer than the rest of the world. Sure, we wear jeans 90% of the time, but we want a closet full of clothes to service the remaining 10%. That, I think is where we get into trouble balancing the need for sustainability. Other geographic areas of the world are emotionally better equipped to handle a smaller closet of well-built clothes. Citizens of the US and Canada, not so much.
New York 2024 – Standard & Strange window
Retailers are trying. Yet a few more steps down the street is Standard & Strange with their moto. “Own Fewer, Better Things” emblazoned on the window. Will it work? I’m still not sure.
Fashion
New York 2024 – Fendi handbag
Despite being involved in residential consumer goods, we can learn a lot from trends in fashion. The sustainable battle is only one point on which we can draw inspiration. For example, I’m surprised the short handled trapezoid shaped purse hasn’t inspired some sort of home-related product. This shape is everywhere in woman’s apparel stores and fine leather establishments, but I don’t see the crossover. I’m not sure what I expected, but I had expected something.
New York 2024 – Louis Vuitton / Supreme collaboration
The cobranding of Louis Vuitton and Supreme is an odd one, but it does speak to the need for old brands to stay relevant and new brands to gain some legacy in order to survive. It can benefit both if done well. The challenge will always be in the implementation.
New York 2024 – Dior Men’s window
Men’s pants are of course shifting from ultra-skinny to massive and floppy. Men’s short pants had been minimal for a few years and Dior wants that to continue to the obvious extreme as exemplified by their window display. Men’s shorts so full they appear as a skirt. Yet another step in the gender blurring of clothing.
Floor Covering
I enjoyed a number of conversations with the rug creators at ICFF this year. Why is a lighting guy looking at rugs? In each case, the people staffing the booths pointed out the importance of lighting to handmade rugs. One gentleman even mentioned he will not begin the weave of a custom piece until he understands the placement of light. Fiber has a nap that conversely reflects and absorbs light. If placed in one direction, the rug will look different than positioned in the opposite direction. We also discussed the difficulty with showroom lighting, to say nothing of the 5000K warehouse lighting on the Javits Center show floor. I left these conversations feeling much more positive than I had expected.
ICFF 2024 – Art Interpreted
Art Interpreted hires artists to create works, then recreates those pieces in fiber. The artist’s signature is prominent in the recreation. Illulian has hired famed Industrial Designer, Karim Rashid to develop designs. Using a different approach, Warp & Weft drew inspiration from organic elements such as birch and earth along with urban topographies simplified into unidimensional planes. JD Staron, a favorite from last year, took a more psychedelic, funky approach. This has to be some sort of renaissance period for rug manufacturers. They are creating interesting, fun and exciting designs that are allowing homes to really shine with the vibrancy they add.
By combining glass and titanium, PlusObject has created some very interesting wall art/wall coverings. They are at once, polished and textural and can easily add a dynamic touch where one is not expected. There are so many ways these could be used. There are also so many other industries that could borrow this concept within their own product lines.
The overall design of a high-end kitchen is not experiencing much movement. A visit to Bulthup, Poggenpohl, Boffi and Scavolini this year could be easily swapped out for a visit in 2022. Kitchens are increasingly minimalist, with clean lines and tailored finishes. The rise of convection stovetops is further smoothing surfaces. With kitchens open to the whole home, they have adopted a higher level of aesthetics than these workplaces ever had in the past. Appliances are hidden, cooking tools are housed and dinnerware is barely tolerated. No wonder there is a rise of “back kitchens” or “dirty kitchens” in higher end homes. Despite the desire for the contrary, food preparations can sometimes make a mess. I wonder if the pendulum is at its turning point and we are about to see a shift. Stay tuned.
I continue to see increased use of glass countertops. A number of these showrooms and related spots include smoked glass, clear glass with etched underside and a number of other variants.
Furniture
New York 2024 – Flou showroom
There were a handful of things to note in the Flou showroom this year. Metal-backed chairs really hardened the appearance of what could have been a “cozy” chair. I liked this combination. A huge pouf ottoman was a nice compliment. Also of note was the extra deep sofa seat. This feature can be found in many other brands, likely a result of demand from people who use the seating in a much more casual way than in the past. (feet up, curled up, snoozing, etc.) Even higher-end manufactures are serving a more casual need.
Take the wide arm of an Adirondack chair and plant them on a new lounge chair and you have the new Lademadera seat by Gandia Blasco. The deeper and wider seat is perfect for casual relaxation. It is also available as a sofa and two-person loveseat.
To accommodate people who both sit and stand at a desk, Beflo has developed a desk that easily transitions between the two demands. Couple that with an effective “wire management” system and this desk could become as hardworking as you!
Hand cast in the US from thin wall resin, the Polli collection from Zachary A. Design has a real amorphous look that I felt could quickly adapt to outdoor environments. Luckily, the material can be used indoors and outdoors.
So much at the ICFF is contemporary. It is, after all, right there in the name! When I saw the work at Sawyer Made, the classic traditional shapes and forms were a bit startling. This is beautiful handcrafted work.
There are often items that defy category; where interest is not typically found. A few of those popped up and I could not help but notice.
New York 2024 – Castrads radiators New York 2024 – Castrads radiators
If you live in an older home (like me!) and have looked at beaten-up radiators you can imagine the excitement stumbling upon Castrads. They can either create bespoke replacements or refurbish your old, worm unit. Radiators are such a dominant piece of architecture in an older home and very few people know what to do with them, they just sort of “exist” in perpetuity, brown, decaying and hissing. What a refreshing difference new radiators can make to a space.
Equally ignored are fireplace grates. Most of us have probably never replaced one and fewer have thought about them overall. DFA Fire Chair has created a better grate that allows wood to burns better, prevents fire “spitting” and reduces smoke escaping into the living space. That it is a much sexier design is simply icing on the cake.
We might not think of storage as a place for clean and effective design, but Ylisse does. They have developed a collection of beautifully simple, clean storage accessories. Shelves, coat racks, magazine pockets and tables are solid and simple. Made in Canada, they are also well priced. Can we ask for more?
Perhaps the most exciting plumbing I saw this trip was from a Quebec based, family owned plumbing manufacturer, Baril. I’ve never heard of them, but found their new designs, which incorporated spheres into the faucets very creative and exciting.
I haven’t thought much about exterior hardscapes, but the products offered by Prism Hardscapes was interesting. Fire pits, planters and outdoor furniture had a nice clean look.
Prado wants technology to disappear into a home. “Invisible Home Technology” is their slogan. There when you need and invisible (or barely visible) when no longer required. They started with an award winning, round C/O and have moved into recessed lighting that is combined with ventilation. At this point, no information is available online for their lighting. Let’s watch this space. It could be exciting.
While at the hotel gym prior to the show, I noticed that the huge and heavy mirrors affixed to the gym wall were pulling away from their mountings. One of the three mirrors was akimbo, looking very precarious. I thought of this as I walked past Lite Mirror while a person was tossing about a VERY large mirror. To solve this problem of weight, they use a highly reflective optical film to create unbreakable, glassless mirrors. The available sizes are very large, so most applications can be filled. Good news for a particular hotel gym I use.
Reishi is a proprietary name for the mycelium based leather alternative developed by MycoWorks. They promise equal durability, performance and feel. I agree on the feel. If I didn’t know better, I’d have said it was fine calves leather. Of course, I can’t speak to the longevity, but over the years there have been many attempts to find a vegan replacement for leather. While I’m not a fabric expert, I’d say they are getting mighty close.
As you can see, there is much to gather from related industries. Lighting shares the home with all of these things. To understand them is to understand how they will comingle with illumination. We want the very apparent product, such as a chandelier and pendant to work together, but we also need to respect the room as functional lighting is positioned. Mutual respect will deliver excellent results for the overall design of a home.
