@marniemosiman - the only recessed lighting we're doing is in the kitchen and over the built ins at the far end of our living room. There is a 20" wide lantern and I thought about going in that direction, but I didn't know if something that big would look awkward in the space. It's funny how something so insignificant can keep you up at night...

If you have a larger island and want three pendants, you want to hang the first pendant directly over the midline of the island. Once the middle pendant is established, hang the other at least 30 inches apart. The diagrams I have shown do tell two different ideas. Some say 6 to 8" from the end and some say approximately 12" or so from ea. end. What is the size light you chosen in diameter. Since the island is narrow, you could consider 4 small to medium vs. medium to larger scale lights. Lights with shades will look more large and open lights will not. What is the height of the ceiling which plays a big factor as you can go larger as you can hang them a bit higher. Is there a photo of the island? Do you have any lights in mind to know the diameter? There is no rule per se as you can see in some of the photos. Some have a larger area left and right at ea. end of the island so the lights are closer over the center. Such as below: This show kitchen shows the lights breaking the, "rule" by being fairly far apart.

I would blow up some balloons that are roughly the size of the pendant you are considering and hang them from the ceiling. I like the pendant you found, but I think you can find something better. Your kitchen does not present as overly industrial, the crown moulding suggests something more traditional. But I see that you like that overall shape based on your ideabooks. Have you looked at Tech Lighting? They have some really cool pendants, one of my fave lighting companies. You can't buy directly from them online, but they provide a list of their online retailers.

Those old mercury vapor lights are huge, heavy and operate HOT unless re-lamped. The size would distract one's eyes to them and become a focal point, distracting from the rest of the kitchen. They are just tooo big and gaudy, IMO Instead, I would go with a "UFO" LED fixture: https://www.ledlightingsupply.com/commercial-lighting/led-low-bay-lighting/wattage-changing-color-changing-ufo-led-low-bay These are the current replacements in gyms, etc. for the mercury vapor fixtures you have. Size-wise, they would be minimalist in a kitchen and, I think, complement rather than dominate the surroundings. They usually come painted white or black, but they could easily be repainted. Many vendors sell them. The model above has selectable wattage/lumens, but even at the low lumen setting (8,400!) I would connect these to a 0-10v wall dimmer and you would have totally adjustable light output, from low-level romantic up to dazzling brightness. https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-IP710-LFZ-Illumatech-Dimmer-Supplies/dp/B00BUZ6A4E I bought this dimmer new on eBay for ~$25. My experience: I removed 24 mercury vapor fixtures from our church gymnasium and replaced them with 100 watt, 15,000 lumen UFO LED fixtures, and wired all 24 new fixtures to a single0-10 volt dimmer. Really works nice!