lighting

Abigail Ahern of Atelier Abigail Ahern, has an intriguing sense of style. She manages to bring together classical, playful and maybe a bit absurd together in a way that somehow redeems what might be otherwise cast aside. She unveiled her new lamps at this years' Parisian tradeshow MAISON & OBJET. The lamps are produced in the U.K. and are available for purchase internationally at prices from $190-$440. The dainty little shades perched like fancy hats are sold separately from $65-$78. For more Abigail check our her delightful decor-centric blog.

Jellio's original limited edition Candelier, the giant chandelier made up of 5000 tiny acrylic gummi bear 'candies,' was so popular its been reincarnated in a new, miniature form. Created by hand-stringing approx 3000 high-gloss acrylic mulit-colored bears that hang in a perfect sphere, the Mini Candelier has a 17" diameter and even at half the size of the original is still a significant lighting fixture. And although each Candelier is handmade so no two are exactly alike Jellio has yet to offer color customization options -- I'd personally like to see one in all yellow or all red. $1,800

The Hooo!!! and Haaa!!! lamps aren't exactly new, but they have been shown in production form this year and if you have hoo-haa sums of money, maybe you can buy one. A collaboration between lighting company Flos, designer Philippe Starck, artist Jenny Holzer, electrical designer Moritz Waldemeyer,and crystal glass maker Baccarat, the Hooo!!! is a table lamp and the Haaa!!! a floor lamp, both fitted with an LED display down their centers that display text.

Jenny Holzer's text is already encoded into the lamp and will be projected onto any nearby surface, which is supposed to make for "an attention-grabbing animation." We aren't sure what the text reads, but we hope it's compelling, because with that list of contributors you know better than to expect mundane prices: 49 examples of the Hooo!!! will go for €9,000 ($11,433 U.S.), while just nine examples of the Haaa!!! will require a cash transfusion of €90,000 ($114,327 U.S.). Check out a short video of the Hooo!!! lamp after the jump.

My favorite lighting and steampunk genius, Art Donovan recently contacted me to show off a new set of one-of-a-kind pieces. The piece above is the 'La Luna' Torchiere. It is made of cast bronze and with a hand-painted shade that looks like a big full moon. The posts of the lamps are solid bronze and cast acrylic. The lamp shade is painted on the sides in what he calls "Museum Blue" (textured, translucent tones of burnt umber and phthalo blue). Each of the two Rococo lamp bases are mirror images of each other with slight variations. They are signed and dated by Art Donovan.

Art says the pair of torchieres were inspired by the time he spent curating the world's first Steampunk Art Exhibition at the Museum of the History of Science, the University of Oxford, UK. Over the last couple of years he got bitten by the steampunk bug. Steampunk combines modern technology with a style sensibility taken from the Victorian era. These torchieres capture a bit of an Art Nouveau sensibility with a slightly spooky edge. I could easily picture them in a movie lighting the lab of some madly brilliant and misunderstood scientist. The pair of torchieres measure 33" tall x 13" wide and are $9500.

Chandeliers have the power to make or break a whole room, so finding one that fits in with your decor and personality is important. This 'Candelier' by Jellio is aiming to appeal to your personal tastes with not only its contemporary and colorful spherical design, but also the fact that if you look closely it's made up entirely of thousands upon thousands of tiny acrylic gummi bears. About 5000 of them handstrung to catch the light just right, each Candelier is slightly different and takes about 2 months to put together. Available in a limited edition of just 10 for $9,500 each.

The Less Lamp is perfect if you have a contemporary decor scheme and are looking for a stand-out piece that's truly your own. Shaped like a large suspended egg, the lamp is delivered as a solid black oval sphere that must be punctured and broken in order for any light to escape. And it conveniently comes with a small pickaxe made especially for the job. Looks like a lot of fun but you'll want to plan carefully and not overdo it -- you can always add more holes but you can't take them back if you crack the whole thing in half. Available at the Moma Store for $875.

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Niermann Weeks, headquartered in Millersville, Md., is the Readers' Choice Winner for a Luxist Award in the best of lighting category.

This family-owned and operated company was founded in 1978 by Joe Niermann and his wife, Eleanor McKay, both with extensive backgrounds in historic preservation. Niermann is the company's principal designer, while McKay is the company's chief executive officer. Their daughters are both involved with the business with Claire serving as vice president of operations and Eleanor in the role of vice president of merchandising.

Joe Niermann's design style is to extrapolate the traditional form within its historic constraints. The result is spectacular lighting that is a pure exercise in geometry.

Niermann Weeks' lighting is jewelry for the interior. Each piece radiates beauty from every angle and in every light.

More than 40% of the company's business is custom-designed to meet the special needs of professional architect and designer clients. Niermann Weeks features more than 600 standard designs with 500 finishes, available through to-the-trade designer showrooms in the United States and Canada.

Chandeliers range in size from a stately 20 feet tall chandelier suitable for display in the lobby of a hotel down to a more intimate 11 inch tall piece for a small boudoir or powder room. Prices vary from $1,500 for a standard design for a simple sconce to $36,000 for a larger piece. Customization increases the price. Each of its products are hand-crafted at the Niermann Weeks factory outside Annapolis, Md.

Nominations have been received and vetted for the best-of-breed in lighting, furniture, antiques resource, dishware and glassware. The Luxist Readers' Choice Decor Awards will be awarded based on your voting.

Each of finalists for the Readers' Choice for the Best in Lighting is a leader in the industry. One is credited with founding modern interior lighting designs, while another creates sculptural masterpieces. A third produces lighting that radiates beauty from every angle while the crystal chandeliers of another have been sought out by royalty. Last, but not least, there's one which melds exquisitely cut crystal with its masterful designs.

The Readers' Choice for the Best in Furniture nominees offer a range of original artistry from simple and pure to the exotic; from traditional to the ultra-modern. Their creations are collected by connoisseurs and museums alike.

The Readers' Choice for the Best in Glassware for a Luxist Award include award-winning brands from France, Sweden and the United States. Each represents the finest of quality and artistry while offering the most exquisite of designs.

Nominees for Readers' Choice for Best in Dishware include companies that have been producing china for centuries. Two have roots in the Limoges region of France, the cradle of the French porcelain industry. One nominee is quintessentially English while two produce American classics. Dishware created by each of these nominees are owned by the who's who of world leaders from the King of Saudi Arabia and the Queen of England to the President of the United States.

Readers' Choice nominees for Best Antiques Resource include the most prestigious art and antiques fairs in the world. These fairs, which are international in scope, are annual destinations for serious connoisseurs, collectors and museum curators who are in search of the best. Each of these fairs have rigorous vetting processes in which the quality, condition and authenticity of each piece is carefully investigated.

Vote now for what you believe is the best of breed for each of these categories. Readers' Choice Awards for Decor will be announced on October 31st.

Niermann Weeks, headquartered in Millersville, Md., is a nominee for a Luxist Award in the best of lighting category.

This family-owned and operated company was founded in 1978 by Joe Niermann and his wife, Eleanor McKay, both with extensive backgrounds in historic preservation. Niermann is the company's principal designer, while McKay is the company's chief executive officer. Their daughters are both involved with the business with Claire serving as vice president of operations and Eleanor in the role of vice president of merchandising.

Joe Niermann's design style is to extrapolate the traditional form within its historic constraints. The result is spectacular lighting that is a pure exercise in geometry.

Niermann Weeks' lighting is jewelry for the interior. Each piece radiates beauty from every angle and in every light.

More than 40% of the company's business is custom-designed to meet the special needs of professional architect and designer clients. Niermann Weeks features more than 600 standard designs with 500 finishes, available through to-the-trade designer showrooms in the United States and Canada.

Chandeliers range in size from a stately 20 feet tall chandelier suitable for display in the lobby of a hotel down to a more intimate 11 inch tall piece for a small boudoir or powder room. Prices vary from $1,500 for a standard design for a simple sconce to $36,000 for a larger piece. Customization increases the price. Each of its products are hand-crafted at the Niermann Weeks factory outside Annapolis, Md.

Niermann Weeks' chandeliers, sconces, lantern, lamps, and ceiling fixtures can be viewed on www.niermannweeks.com (including retail prices). Its products are available at major design centers in the United States, Canada, and London; on internet portals such as www.shopAD.net, and at many retail locations.

Bodner Chandeliers, nominated for a Luxist Award in lighting, are creations that one might expect from a true artist.

Award winning lighting artist and designer, Jessica Kay Bodner's creations include sculpted suspended "Beehive" forms (as seen above), wrought of spiraling steel, casts stellar light projecting shadows that spin abstract lines onto the surrounding surfaces, creating a double dimension of drawing.

The Ventura, Ca.-based artist is also known for her series of suspended galaxy forms. Orbs of light appear like stars or distant planets that float on spiraling tube steel, stellar light that has no beginning and no end emanates from these celestial forms.

Other commissioned works include large woven metal baskets, wrought iron forms reminiscent of archaeological subjects, illuminated flora and fauna sculptures forged in steel and large scale paintings and installations. Her work has been commissioned for public and private projects in the United States, Canada, Singapore, Europe and the Virgin Islands.

Notable installations and commissions by Bodner can be seen at the Landmarc Restaurant at the Time Warner Center in New York, N.Y., the Tohona Native American Museum at the Desert Diamond Casino in Tucson, Arizona and the Gansevooert South Hotel (as seen above) in South Beach, Miami.

Bodner can be purchased through Bloominglites. The company also offers customized work.

Schonbek has been nominated for the Luxist Awards in the lighting category.

Adolf Schonbek started it all as a young man in Bohemia in the year 1870 when he walked away from his family's glassworks business and struck out on his own. His chandeliers quickly grew in popularity, including commissions for Buckingham Palace and the White House. Years went by and the Schonbek name became famous for its crystal chandeliers, although eventually the European factories were lost to the Nazis and Communists and were relocated first to Montreal and later the United States.

Schonbek was acquired by Swarovski in 2007, melding Swarovski's exquisitely cut crystal with Schonbek's masterful chandelier design and manufacturing techniques. The resulting chandeliers are beautiful beyond measure and timeless in their appeal, and surprisingly at home among almost any decor or style. The Schonbek website has a decorating game that allows you to see how the entire feel of a room can be altered simply by changing the chandelier, and how they can enhance everything form an elegant architectural foyer to a cozy country bedroom.

If you're interested in seeing or buying Schonbek for yourself just send them an email and they'll connect you with a showroom near you.

Jean Perzel is a nominee for a Luxist Award in the best lighting category.

Jean Perzel was born in Bruck, Bavaria in 1892. He began painting glass as a young child and at age 16 toured around Europe learning new techniques and methods. In 1923, after many years of working and studying, Jean Perzel settled in France and began to specialize in modern interior lighting designs. Perzel is credited with being the first to design exceptionally modern lighting pieces, as well as being one of the very first to focus on the options and possibilities of electricity as well as the various effects that could be achieved with different glass treatments. He is perhaps most well known for his strikingly simple designs that are based in science and logic, and that stand the test of time without appearing old or dated.

In 1933 Jean Perzel began tutoring his nephew, François Raidt, in the fine arts of optics and lighting and eventually handed over the business to him 1951. Jean Perzel lighting, as it exists today, is under the management of François Raidt's son Oliver Raidt and offers a wide array of contemporary but timeless lighting options that hold true to the original influences of Perzel. Sconces, floor lamps, outdoor options, and even lighted pedestal tables make up their current offerings, all available in your choice of size and color/finish. Order a catalog here.

Nominated for a Luxist Award in the glassware and lighting categories is Baccarat, which has sold its creations to the royal families of France, Japan, Russia, Arabia, Morocco and even the White House, since it was established in France in 1764.

Since its founding, Baccarat has continued expanding its influence, inspired in roots stemming from an ingenious handcrafted work of the highest quality, throughout the world.

To this day, Baccarat crystal is still handcrafted in the village of Baccarat located in Lorraine in eastern France. The crystal pieces it creates are described as both divine and exhilarating. Yes, they are extravagant but always elegant.

Since 1824, Baccarat has been presenting magnificent crystal chandeliers. The Maharajah of Gwalior ordered a large chandelier, weighing about a ton to decorate his new Palace. A series of candelabras were created for the Czar Nicolas II's St. Petersburg Winter Palace. Baccarat's magnificent lighting includes crystal chandeliers, sconces, lamps, floor lamps, candleholders and candelabras. Each piece has ethereal qualities as it glistens with the incomparable luster of crystal.

There's nothing like the light that emits from Baccarat crystal, and perhaps nothing tastes better than when drunk from a Baccarat crystal glass.

I'm not sure just how long these items have been available but I honestly had no idea Swarovski carried a line of architectural lighting options. Whether you choose a single crystal for a more modern setting or an artsy array of crystals designed to dazzle the eye Swarovski has a variety of choices to suit your home decor. Glam up your home with wall-mounted, recessed ceiling, or hanging luminaires each showcasing a unique design and glittering glow. I wonder how much light the single cut crystal of the 'Octa' and 'Madison' actually gives off -- is it a fancy nightlight or contemporary mood lighting?

Bathroom lighting is a delicate thing because you want to be able see clearly while washing your face or tweezing something, but you also want to avoid that bright, cold atmosphere that can happen so easily in a small room full of porcelain and tile. I'm not sure that these illuminated mirrors from Alchemy are the answer to that dilemma for everyone, but if you have the right room and decor scheme these Full Moon Mirrors could provide just the right balance of light and luxe interest to your bathroom.

They have several designs available, including pure gold and platinum versions. Pricing upon request.

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