Lighting For Paintings

Paintings are common in fine homes as well asTo date, the best source of this type is a halogen
office space. This is not surprising when webulb. These bulbs produce an intense, white light
consider that painting has been with in one formthat renders color at levels near that of sunlight.
or fashion for at least 40,000 years. Light inHalogen bulbs are found in recessed ceiling fixtures
paintings themselves determines the tone of thethat shine light down on artwork. They are also
work by creating the illusion of three dimensionalhoused inside modern art lighting projectors, which
spaces with the interplay of light and shadows.also install in the ceiling.
Lighting for paintings should not cast shadows,When used in lighting paintings, recessed lights
however, but rather must discover and magnifyhave to be filtered. All art lighting projectors,
the luminosity of the scene and animate thebecause they are intended only for art lighting,
action between objects and characters. Thisare manufactured with filters in them.
method of lighting paintings is as old as Lascaux,Lighting for paintings must be adjustable and
where firelight was used to make the seeminglydimmable.
crude stick figures of hunters and animalsPaintings must be lit from the correct angle of
suddenly spring to life with the illusion of threeincidence to avoid spill light shining past the
dimensional substance and physical movement.boundaries of the frame and to avoid glare than
To create this sense of vivid life and realism, artcan reflect off the canvas back into the eye.
lighting for paintings must be sourced from specialPicture lights are difficult to adjust like this and are
types of fixtures and controlled in such a mannergenerally not recommended for home or office
that enhances the work without damaging thedecoration. Also, they can burn very hot at times
piece or limiting the aesthetic.and are extremely difficult to filter, making them
Only filtered light can be used for safely lightingunsafe as well.
paintings.Recessed lighting and projector lighting are much
Oils and canvases are sensitive materials and willbetter sources to use because they allow the
deteriorate if exposed to UV light. Infrared light, isdecorator to change the direction of the light at
not as damaging as ultraviolet light, but itwill. Some recessed fixtures can be adjusted in
nonetheless produces large quantities of heat thatthis manner more easily than others, so it is
will dry out paint and crack the canvas. Becauseimportant to make certain before purchasing
sunlight contains both UV and IR radiation, it mustthem if the models being ordered were made
never be used to light paintings, because it willspecifically for lighting paintings.
quickly destroy them in a short period of time.Projectors offer even more adjustability because
Sunlight is also way too intense to light a paintingthey hang suspended from the ceiling and can be
because it overpowers the combination ofpositioned anywhere along a three-dimensional
shadows and light in the painting and flattens theaccess. Some projectors are easier to adjust
perspective of the image.than others. It is best to talk to an picture lighting
It is therefore necessary to use a filtered artificialspecialist here at ILD to find the model best
lighting source that strips the light beam of IR andsuited to a particular home, office, or museum
UV radiation.application.
Use a light source with a high color renderingCall a professional firm to have your art lights
index (CRI).installed.
While artificial light is much safer than sunlight toLighting simple prints or photographs is something
use as lighting for paintings, sunlight's ability tomost people can do with retail picture lights.
render color is unmatched because sunlight is aLighting a painting as art is something completely
perfect blend of all natural colors of the spectrum.different. It takes commercial grade equipment
Nevertheless, it is simply out of the question as athat can only be obtained by a design firm from
light source for residental art design, so we havethe manufacture. It also takes knowledge of art
to find an artificial, close approximation to sunlightand design to truly create a masterpiece of
to effectively illuminate art without damaging itslighting.
integrity or quality in the process.