The function of a light -or lighting- would appear to be self-evident: to act as a replacement for, or a supplement to, natural light. Its purpose is to enable us to perform routine tasks comfortable when it’s dark or gloomy outside, to orientate ourselves in space, and to allow us to navigate safely from place to place.

For most people “artificial” lighting is synonymous with electric light. Yet for millennia before the first incandescent bulb, shelters, dwellings and buildings of various descriptions were illuminated by a variety of what can only be called, in comparison to daylight, artificial means: firelight, rush lights, candles made of tallow or beeswax, oil lamps and gasoliers. Along the way, people discovered how to amplify such sources through the reflection of shiny or mirrored surfaces.

Light is profoundly celebratory. From the candles from a birthday cake to the firework display and the decorative traditions of Christmas, light plays a central role in festivities around the world. On such occasions, it is the ability of light to create a spectacle that stirs emotion and taps into the collective unconscious.