Life as Art:Reimagining Light: Artistic Approaches to Lighting Renovation

Reimagining Light: Artistic Approaches to Lighting Renovation

The shadows that light creates make life interesting. If everything is brightly lit, everything demands attention. However, by using various levels of lighting, such as art lighting, column lighting, and focused decorative lighting, a theatrical component begins to emerge, making features more intriguing. Lighting designers recognize the importance of refurbishing existing lights, updating fixtures, and preserving the integrity of original decorative pieces. This often involves reviving items like chandeliers, sconces, or exterior decorative sconces that have succumbed to rust or faded paint.

Creativity invariably leads to productive outcomes. Rust, if not too advanced, can be lightly sanded, primed, and repainted. For slightly cloudy paint, often seen on exterior lanterns, a simple refresh with Vaseline or wax can revive the finish. Interior sconces or chandeliers can quickly become outdated and are frequently discarded. It can be discouraging to see a once-stylish lighting piece fall out of fashion within 5-10 years after an initial investment.

The restoration process for an older fixture is similar to starting a painting. Initially, it’s all very exciting as you visualize your updated lighting, perhaps imagining a new color over burnished gold. You carefully tape off the sockets, remove the chain, and dismantle any small hardware pieces, laying them out on a table like tools in an operating room. However, as you begin to paint, you realize this is not like painting a piece of art at all! Unlike a flat canvas, your decorative light has twists and turns, presenting a three-dimensional challenge with hard-to-reach areas. Each part requires rotation as it dries, and what seemed like a simple task may require three additional coats to add depth and introduce new colors. Midway, you might question why you started, but as you apply the third coat, you begin to see your efforts pay off. By the final coat, you are pleased with the undertaking, perhaps even inspired to add new shades, change the glass, adjust the sockets, and switch out the candle covers. The hours of work culminate in a unique lighting fixture that you’ve creatively transformed. Before embarking on refurbishing multiple pieces, like four hallway sconces or 10-15 exterior wall sconces, consider the complexity of working with three-dimensional, possibly heavy, or awkwardly shaped objects. Additionally, these type of projects require an uninterrupted work space to be utilized sometimes for days, even weeks at a time.

As artists, designers, crafters, and creatives, we thrive on challenges, and restoring any type of decorative lighting is not for the faint of heart. However, such projects are definitely worth adding to your list of spring and summer endeavors to breathe new life into your home!