Glass Art: How to Place and Light It
Helpful tips on illuminating glass art around your home
Before I became an interior designer, I was a full-time artist. Although I worked in several different mediums, my favorite medium has always been glass. Glass art has always been a passion of mine — I love the colors, depth and translucency.
Because of the translucent nature of glass, there are some special considerations to make in placement and lighting to best display your glass art. Here are some helpful tips.
Because of the translucent nature of glass, there are some special considerations to make in placement and lighting to best display your glass art. Here are some helpful tips.
Glass needs light to pass through it when it is translucent. I designed these glass panels and had them cast by a local glass studio. Each panel is 30" wide by 54" tall and 1.5" thick. They weigh 220 lbs. each! To allow light to pass through to show off the unique colors, I had custom steel holders made that are set into the walls and that hold the glass about 6" away from the wall.
Lights are placed above and below the panels. In this case, the lights are actually aimed at the wall so that the light bounces off the wall and passes forward through the colored glass.
These amazing glass panels are also installed floating away from the walls, with a white wall serving as a perfect backdrop. For this piece of art, instead of light coming from behind, the light source comes from a ceiling spotlight in front of the glass in order to cast shadows against the wall. The shadows then become part of the art. The figures appear to be wrestling with each other and the shadows add a feeling of movement to the piece.
Artist is unknown.
Artist is unknown.
This glass art by Robert Kaindl has both translucent and opaque properties. Using a free-standing spotlight is an unusual choice for lighting and it works beautifully. Because the bowl is sitting in the middle of the room, it can be appreciated from all sides. The light passing through the bowl from the outside and reflected on the inside back out again, highlights different aspects of the design. Depending on which way you are looking at it, you can appreciate the unique qualities of glass.
Since glass and light go hand-in-hand, some artists actually incorporate the light right into the work. Some may call this a chandelier, but I call it a glass sculpture. Notice that they have placed spotlights aimed at the sculpture all the way around on the ceiling to create a glow throughout the entire piece.
If you love glass art, then white walls may be the way for you to go. To share a personal story, one of my clients came home from the store so excited because she had found a beautiful but transparent, rich turquoise-colored glass platter. The turquoise color glowed in the brightly-lit and almost completely white store. Unfortunately, the only places to put this platter in her own home had dark wood paneling on the walls and no way to provide light from behind. Ultimately it ended up looking drab and dark, and she was very disappointed.
The colors of these beautiful platters show up spectacularly against this white wall.
The colors of these beautiful platters show up spectacularly against this white wall.
Oh — Did I say that you needed to put glass in front of a white wall for it to look good? Well, not exactly. These yellow wall pieces by Robert Kaindl look spectacular against this black wall. Here's why: They have a high percentage of opaque glass in them. The black wall shows through the translucent areas adding contrast with the opaque yellow which shows up well against the dark wall.
So as a rule of thumb: if you are placing a piece of glass that is all or mostly translucent, the colors are going to show up better in front of white and with light coming from behind it. But if the glass is mostly opaque, then you can put it in front of any color wall and light it from the front.
So as a rule of thumb: if you are placing a piece of glass that is all or mostly translucent, the colors are going to show up better in front of white and with light coming from behind it. But if the glass is mostly opaque, then you can put it in front of any color wall and light it from the front.
Placing your glass pieces where light can pass through from windows and other sources will give it the best opportunity to sparkle. The clear glass table and white carpet under this sculpture allow the colors to be appreciated from all angles.
This colored accent wall from designer Pepe Calderin, is created from pieces of colored glass that are mounted at different levels. Some pieces appear to be polished while others are either sand-blasted or acid etched.
Light playing over the surface highlights the unique dimensions and because the glass is translucent, the light shines into the depth of the ruby-colored glass.
These are Leucos lights created from stacked blown glass cylinders. Placing them in front of large windows means the color and translucency is displayed even when the lights are not turned on.
Placing a collection of glass pieces in this unique open room divider elevates the look of simple glass vases.
So, if you are trying to place glass art: Think space, light, bright and white!
More Glass-inspired Ideabooks:
Decorate with a Rainbow of Glass
Cascading Chandeliers: All Kinds of Gorgeous
Life in a Glass House
So, if you are trying to place glass art: Think space, light, bright and white!
More Glass-inspired Ideabooks:
Decorate with a Rainbow of Glass
Cascading Chandeliers: All Kinds of Gorgeous
Life in a Glass House