How To Enhance Your Home Art Displays with LED Lights

I recently went to the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art (LACMA) to check out the Stanley Kubrick exhibit. Anyone who has enjoyed a Kubrick film knows that the iconic director had an knack for blending flawless composition, impeccable writing and darkly twisted storylines into some of the most important cinematic tales of our time. I wondered if a museum exhibit could do a master like Kubrick justice, and was pleasantly surprised to find out that it did.

The show features props, re-worked scripts, letters, costumes and never-before-seen artifacts from nearly all of Kubrick’s pictures, seamlessly guiding spectators through his portfolio of work, honoring each motion picture with a space that encapsulates the feel and message of the corresponding film.

LED lighting, both strip lights and overhead module and puck lights, were part of what made the show so successful. The lights were versatile enough to highlight specific parts of each piece, and dynamic enough to create a classically creepy Stanley Kubrick vibe when needed. Also, the LED lights help to protect the artwork since they emit very low heat.

The success of the Kubrick show got me thinking about how we display and present art in our own homes. Lighting plays an especially important role in accentuating artwork and creating the right ambiance for certain pieces of art. Whether you use LED strip lighting on shelves to accent small trinkets, a super bright module light to up-light a large sculpture, or LED light bars over paintings hung on the wall, a few lighting modifications in your home can turn a drab space into a stunning artsy one in no time!

I talked with Amy Turner, Director of Antiques and Estate Auctions at I. M. Chait Gallery and Auctioneers in Beverly Hills, CA to find out how to best light art pieces in the home. Here are her tips:

1)   Avoid direct sunlight: “Never hang a piece near an undressed window or in a place where it can be hit by sunbeams. Nothing damages artwork like UV rays,” says Turner.

2)   Light the piece evenly: “For most flat pieces of art, you will want to avoid shadows to best reveal what the artist was going for. Strip lights or light bars mounted above a flat painting will eliminate shadowing, casting even illumination.”

3)   Minimize glare: “Most framing shops carry museum glass, which creates no glare and cuts UV rays,” advises turner. Using lighting fixtures that create less glare will help as well. For instance, the SOFTVIEW 58 Mist Resist LED Strip Light combines with our Reign Dimmer Switch to create the perfect low-profile lighting solution for shelves and display cabinets. It produces no glare or reflection, and so is great to use against glass-covered art pieces as well.