david k warfel
If light itself is a gift, what kind of gift is it? Is it a new pair of socks, useful but not particularly exciting, or new electronics that are exciting now but will be obsolete in a few short years? Is light something handmade with love, with no monetary value but nonetheless priceless? Light, which... Continue Reading →
Of all five (or six?) of the promises of light, light that helps us Do Better is the one most of us think we know. It doesn’t take a lighting designer to understand that, if we want to read a magazine, we need a light on it. Does it really matter if it comes from a... Continue Reading →
Periodically my obsession with Red Velvet cake (or Waldorf Astoria Cake, as it is sometimes known) leaves the safety of my personal life and comes across the border into my work. A few years ago, struggling to explain the value of layers of light in ways that would make it easy remember, I realized that... Continue Reading →
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sr0kg0PGIvE Lee Travis and his team from Wipliance released their third video shot in the ProSource Lighting Technology and Learning Center in Dallas, Texas! Lee and I discuss layered lighting in kitchens in this short video. We designed the Learning Center to share good lighting with others, and I am thrilled with this shoot join... Continue Reading →
Imagine the future: light helps you keep your balance as you age, cuts down on point sources that cause glare, minimizes sleep disturbances, and helps you see what you are doing better than ever. Wouldn't it be nice? Pushing these boundaries requires experiments like our recent lighting makeover at my parents' farmhouse in Illinois. The... Continue Reading →
If you have read other posts on this blog you might be thinking "this guy hates all normal lighting." You would be mostly correct. Take stairways for example. My previous home had a light at the bottom and a light at the top. That made the landings well lit and the stairs themselves, well, dark.... Continue Reading →
Fifteen years ago I did a budget-friendly lighting design for my mother's total kitchen remodel as shown in the photograph above. I delivered 50 foot-candles to the horizontal task plane, as I'd been taught to do. I had multiple downlights over the sink and placed the downlights directly over the counter. I didn't like the... Continue Reading →
The Gift of Light must be fully unwrapped to be understood. Inside the gift box of white light are all the colors of the rainbow, only visible when we split the wavelengths apart with a prism or raindrops. The power of light is also multi-layered, affecting our lives in many ways. My approach to better... Continue Reading →
So now you know- because I am certain you read all of my posts again and again until they are burned in memory- that we need light that helps us adapt to changes in tasks, times, eyes, and moods. Most of the time, I do not add any lights for changing. I add dimmers... Continue Reading →
If you're looking to review the layers of light and apply them to your living room, my article on Houzz.com (link below) would be a good place to start. In addition to my oh-so-nifty sketch, you'll find photographic examples of each layer from multiple projects in multiple styles. Enjoy!
the language of light 