When you are working toward the creation of a specific aesthetic or an artistic vision for your home or landscaping, lighting can often be your best friend. Although there are many different types of lighting, one of the most important types is accent lighting.
Accent lighting is, in short, any lighting that is used to highlight (or accent) a particular feature of a location. This can be lights meant to illuminate something functional, such as stair lights to help people walk safely without tripping in the dark. It can also be something more ornamental, like a particular painting or art piece in an indoor space, or maybe a prized ornamental plant, statue, or mural outside in the landscaping. Additionally, accent lighting can also be used as an ornamentation in itself, such as a lamp with a particularly beautiful or ornate casing.
The general principle is one rooted in the basics of visual arts. Contrast draws attention. And when one thing is brighter than everything else around it, that creates a contrast that will draw the viewer’s eye to it without you having to add a plaque, direct them to it yourself, or use any other more obtrusive method. It also creates a visual hierarchy, allowing you to decide which parts of your space you would like to be viewed first and which parts you would like to act as secondary attractions or visual resting points between highlighted features.
Accent lighting is just one of the many tools in a homeowner’s arsenal for creating an inviting, striking, and visually dynamic space, but it is certainly an important one.