accent lighting

Accent lighting is aimed to create a mood and to add interest to rooms; it avoids the boredom of overly uniform lighting. It highlights and emphasizes areas and objects of the room like paintings, collectibles, architectural details, floral arrangements...

Accent lighting creates brightness contrast between the elements being highlighted and their surround, and can be an important lighting design element.

Accent lighting points

Do not multiply accent lighting points. That would be a cause of energy-inefficiency without benefiting the aesthetics of the room.

Accent lighting should make sense and should not cause excessive brightness and contrasts and, consequently, glare (lighting professionals use a three to one ratio as a reference for the accent lighting points).

Each accent lighting point should be carefully assessed in what concerns the location of lights. Try different locations before setting a location, and keep the light close enough to the element to be highlight.

Light sources

Recessed adjustable fixtures and track lights - using lower-voltage and directional light sources - are excellent for accent lighting.

Low-voltage halogen and halogen PAR lamps are largely used, but the dimmable and directional nature of LED lighting - an emerging technology - are making them an interesting alternative, namely if the lights are switched on for long periods of time (LEDs are more energy-efficient than common alternatives).

Switches and fixtures

Accent lighting should have switches or dimmers apart from ambient lighting.

Accent and general (ambient) lighting respond to different needs and involve different degrees of lighting, and only by separating their switches and dimmers we can get the right balance and contrast.

Light fixtures should also be easily movable, to facilitate possible future changes in the design of the room.