The secret to a successful dinner party? Good lighting. In fact, mood lighting is paramount to creating an intimate, convivial atmosphere around the dining table no matter the time of day or night. Take inspiration from these archival projects when considering how to light your space, and get ready for your most atmospheric mealtime yet.
Rainbows and light in Maine
The team behind An Aesthetic Pursuit chose a pair of ANDlight’s ‘Vine’ pendants to light up the open-plan dining area of their Maine home and showroom. The drama continues under the table with a bespoke rainbow rug that snakes through the home. Forest green ‘All Plastic’ chairs by Vitra add to the colourful scheme.
The lighting designer’s home that got a literal glow up
The home and workspace of Apparatus founder Gabriel Hendifar is both a design laboratory and a place to unwind, that also serves to showcase the brand’s cutting-edge lighting designs. This custom-made terrazzo table is where staff mealtimes happen in the studio section of the apartment – the statement light above is the ‘Talisman’ chandelier.
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A moody dining room in Melbourne
Interior decorator Simone Haag paired the ‘Maxwell’ table by Massimo Castagna for Acerbis with Mario Bellini’s classic 1977 ‘Cab’ chairs for Cassina in this Melbourne home. The moody dining scene is made all the more atmospheric by the ‘Branchflower’ pendant light by Giffin Design. Its sculptural silhouette is echoed in the shape of Milan-based designer Agustina Bottoni’s wind chime sculpture in the corner.
The New York home with restaurant-level lighting
Good lighting is essential to restaurants and bars, and New York-based Home Studios brought their expertise in designing for hospitality to this Manhattan apartment. They designed this custom swing glass pendant to hang above a walnut ‘Column’ table by Fort Standard and Niels Otto Møller ‘Model 80’ chairs from the 1960s.
The lighting designer with a luminous home
Unsurprisingly, the home of Magic Circus Éditions founder Marie-Lise Féry is filled with fabulous lighting. In the dining room of her 19th-century house in Saint-Cyr-au-Mont-d’Or, there’s a pleasing symmetry. Two ‘01’ chandeliers by Magic Circus Éditions hang above a pair of ‘Hub’ tables and two upholstered ‘Lek’ sofa benches, both by Christophe Delcourt for Collection Particulière. Along with ‘Crono’ dining chairs by Antonio Citterio for Flexform, the scheme is pulled together by India Mahdavi’s ‘March’ rugs for Golran.
Chic chandeliers in a Paris home
There’s statement lighting to be found in nearly every room of this glamorous Parisian apartment designed by Girodroux & Delpy, from the ‘Ovni’ chandelier from Ombre Portée to the ‘Flo Lounge’ floor lamp by Foster + Partners for Lumina in the study. The kitchen diner features Barber Osgerby’s ‘Smalto’ table and Warren Platner’s eponymous chairs with the ‘Agnes’ chandelier by Lindsey Adelman; the bespoke Calcutta marble island and splashback make for a suitably dramatic backdrop.
A Brutalist home with depth in Melbourne
This home in Melbourne, by Bear Agushi and Webster architecture, relies on ‘depth, layering and materiality to offset its boldness,’ says architect Dan Webster. Interior decorator Simone Haag artfully layered ceramics, bespoke lighting and custom furniture to offset the brutalist architect. In the dining room, the delicate geometry of the ‘Ball And Shade’ pendant light by Square in Circle contrasts with the sturdiness of the ‘Venus’ chairs by Konstantin Grcic for ClassiCon and a custom dining table from Studio Thomas Lentini.
The perfectly lit home in London
Light – both natural and artificial – is integral to how Georges and Michèle Maria, the duo behind design studio MariaGroup, design a space. ‘We play with light architecturally, but also with every decorative choice we make,’ they say. In this London home, each lighting piece was carefully considered to create the right ambience for the right room. In the case of the dining area, it was Frank Gehry’s ‘Mamacloud’ design for Belux, which hangs above a custom table and vintage ‘Model 42’ chairs by Kai Kristiansen.
A touch of retro in a Parisian home
A 1970s-style palette of terracotta, pistachio and candy pink define this vibrant Parisian apartment designed by Fleur Delesalle. The scheme is reflected in the three ‘Phenomena’ pendants by Dechem Studio for Bomma which hang above a bespoke colour-blocked table, while ‘Cruz Lazy’ chairs from Vincent Sheppard surround it. Two ‘Pletenice’ sideboards by Am.Pm are decorated with a ‘Gatto’ lamp by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni for Flos and ‘Totem’ vases by Marie-Victoire Winckler.
The Milan apartment that’s an ode to Italian design
Architect Luciano Giorgi was influenced by the greats of Italian design when reimagining this Milanese apartment for a friend. Furniture classics such as the ‘Camaleonda’ sofa by Mario Bellini for B&B Italia fill the space, while the stylish dining area is lit up two 1960s brass pendant lamps by Afra and Tobia Scarpa for Flos – further mood lighting comes via a luminous artwork by Nanda Vigo purchased at Luisa Delle Piane gallery.
