Light doesn’t only allow us to see clearly or help us find something in the dark. Light is an important part of designing a space, especially the interiors, since it enhances the aesthetic visual of the place while also setting its ambiance and overall vibe. It can even affect the mood of the users, as well as their performance or productivity.
Light is not limited to just brightening up a room, though. Aside from being an aid when doing tasks, there are several types of lighting that could be used to further emphasize certain features of your space such as the furniture, décor, art pieces, the paint of your walls, and design finishes.
Ambient Lighting
This type is more commonly called general lighting. It is the primary source of light that brightens up a room without giving off too much glare. As the name suggests, this type also helps improve the ambience of the room or space, like adding some warmth through its subtle glow. Ambient lighting can be achieved by the usual light fixtures such as the ceiling-mounted ones: pin lights, recessed lights, and chandeliers; and wall sconces that often provide semi direct lighting. Some fixtures have the option to adjust the light from warm to cool tone and vice versa, or to a different hue, while some can be dimmed to a specific level, allowing the users to set the atmosphere of a room the way they would want it to be.
Accent Lighting
This type is often used to highlight certain features, objects, or any focal point in a space whether indoor or outdoor. It ‘accentuates’ things such as art pieces, display items, a water feature and even the plants in your garden. Accent lighting is also sometimes used in overhead kitchen cabinets to highlight the countertop or backsplash and the cabinetry itself while being a task lighting at the same time.
Spotlights, track lights and wall sconces are examples of accent light fixtures. These kinds are flexible to use and can be turned in a specific direction or angle to really focus on what you like to accentuate.
Task Lighting
This type provides light for a particular task or activity and is mostly used in workspaces. It serves as an aid when doing something that requires a more focused lighting for you to work better or focus well like writing and reading because there are times that the general lighting is not enough, or you might just want to have some light in your workspace only rather than having the entire room lit up.
The most common task light fixtures are table/desk lamps but drop lights and under-cabinet lights can also be used for task lighting when preparing food in your dining table and kitchen.
Photo Reference: www.workspacedesigns.co.uk
Cove Lighting
This type is often used in and directed towards the ceiling or the top corners of walls. It can be concealed, hidden, or built into ledges which give indirect lighting. It is kind of like a mixture of both the ambient and accent lighting since it can be used to subtly illuminate a room and can also accentuate your ceiling or walls. This type may be set into a specific tone and hue, too, that adds up to the mood of a space.
Strip lights or a series of pin lights are used for this type and to achieve the ‘coved’ lighting effect, these light fixtures are placed under ledges or inside wall crown moldings and are facing upwards to make the light reflect or bounce back on the ceiling, providing an even softer glare.
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