Electric Sandwich
So you’ve finally made the move from incandescent to CFLs only to learn that you’re well behind the LED wave. Get ready to switch again.
In 1907, a 25-year-old Marconi radio researcher named H. J. Round applied a voltage to a crystal of Carborundum and inadvertently discovered the light-emitting diode. That first feeble glow has, more than 100 years later, become an $8-billion-a-year industry, producing LEDs of nearly every color and intensity, providing illumination for everything from searchlights to night-lights. But though they’re more efficient than incandescent bulbs, and longer lasting than fluorescents, their relatively high manufacturing costs have kept LEDs out of living-room lamps until recently. And their tenure there may be short-lived, thanks to the development of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs).
Unlike crystalline LEDs, an OLED’s light comes from a thin organic film sandwiched between two electrodes. This film can be sprayed onto nearly anything, even flexible surfaces like paper, plastic, or cloth, with nothing more elaborate than ink-jet printer technology. With the addition of some cheap microprocessors, a single OLED surface can at different times serve as a light source, a cinema display, a computer monitor—even a mirror!
Because they can be embedded into objects, OLEDs will force us to reevaluate our thinking about interior lighting. For centuries, natural light has come into our homes through large rectangular windows and doors, while artificial light has usually come from point sources like candles, gas flames, and incandescent bulbs. How will we change our conception of the way a room should be lit when the entire ceiling—or the walls, or the carpet, or the couch—can glow?
Articles
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Lighting
Lisa Heschong, a California architect with the Heschong Mahone Group, which specializes in research on building performance, doesn’t think much of firelight: “The use of fire for…
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HONO Electric Candle LED light
With the holidays coming up and children in the house, I'm looking for any alternative to having actual fire inside. A far cry from the flickering candles Pottery Barn was selling at Halloween…
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An Introduction to Lighting
One of the oldest proclamations in Western literature—maybe the very oldest, depending on how you see things—is “Let there be light.” And for most of human history, whether…
Products
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Kindle
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Galvanized Planters
The terrarium we made months ago is still—miraculously—alive and well, which gives us a boost of confidence to take on slightly more ambitious planting scheme. These galvanized steel…
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Box Light
The Clapper is old news. These days, touch activation is taking the world by storm. Illuminate your room with the gentle tap of a fingertip on this little Box light.
Dwell Collections
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Light Flight
Domestic lighting is having a sculptural moment with designers eschewing accented shapes and materials in favor of surprising silhouettes. Put aside your task lamps, Edison bulbs, and cloth…
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As You Light It
As You Light It is an exploration of lighting innovation through the lens of leading luminaries from theatre, urban planning, and residential design.
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Light it Up
There's much to be gleaned from the September 2010 issue's "Lighting 101", from the horrors of light pollution to the joys of organic LEDs. Thus inspired, we thought we'd present our most…
Tips
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Don't Forget to Leave the Light Burning
Don't leave thoughts about lighting until last—consider how you will illuminate your space while you are in the planning stages.
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How to Pick the Right Light
Lighting should be very task oriented. If you plan on sitting at the sofa and reading, the lamp has to be at the right reading site. Keep decorative lamps for overhead lighting and all the other…
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How to Build a Lighting Concept
I’m a fan of floor lighting plus a couple of small table lamps for the living room. Use ambient lighting and low-wattage warm bulbs to create a relaxed atmosphere.
Videos
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As You Light It: Leni Schwendinger
In our second installment of our series on lighting design we venture to Manhattan to see "lighting urbanist" Leni Schwendinger. From the terminals of Port Authority to the brights lights of Time…
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As You Light It: Roll & Hill
For our third and last installment of our series on lighting design, we trek to Brooklyn for a round table discussion about the power of illumination with the creative minds behind Roll & Hill.
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As You Light It: Jet Lag
For the first installment of our new series investigating lighting design, we go behind the scenes of the Obie-award-winning play Jet Lag. The show, originally conceived by architects Elizabeth…
Events
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Light and Design
Light plays an important role in our daily lives. We are surrounded by it and dependent on it. Light is also key to design. There’s design for light—lamps, for example—and design…
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Kartell Lighting Sale
All lighting products purchased from October 24 through November 15, 2009 will be discounted by 15% in the following Kartell Flagship locations: Kartell Flagship Store Boston 10 Saint James…
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Light Beyond Vision
For the third event in a series on light, swissnex San Francisco brings Jean-Louis Scartezzini and Mirjam Münch, from the Solar Energy and Building Physics Laboratory at EPFL, to present their…
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