Contemporary Lighting: A Style Guide

What is contemporary lighting?

Contemporary lighting is current, clean and uncluttered. It leans on simple silhouettes, slim cords and rods, and matte or metallic finishes rather than detail, so the fitting reads as quiet and modern. Because it is form-led rather than tied to one era, it is the most flexible style to work with, at home in a new build or as a modern counterpoint in an older room.

Below is how to recognise it, where it suits, and the pieces in our range worth knowing.

How to recognise contemporary lighting

A few features give it away:

• Simple silhouettes. Clean pendants, globes and drums with no fuss.
• Cord and slim-rod suspensions. Often on a fabric cord or a fine rod rather than heavy chain.
• Matte and metallic finishes. Matte black, satin brass, brushed nickel and chrome.
• Restraint. The look is about proportion and finish, not decoration.

Where contemporary lighting suits

Contemporary fittings suit modern kitchens, dining rooms and hallways, and they are the easy way to keep a scheme feeling current. They also work as a deliberate contrast in a period room: a clean pendant against ornate cornices reads considered rather than clashing.

It isn't only an indoor style. Our Trentham outdoor sconce carries the same clean lines onto an entrance or facade, so you can run one contemporary look from the street through to the kitchen.

Finish ties it to the room. Matte black is graphic, satin brass warm, and brushed nickel and chrome cooler and sharper.

Contemporary lighting in our range

Our Ridge and Main pendants show the cord-hung look at its simplest, a clean shade on a black or white cord in satin brass, matte black or brushed nickel. Our Keys chain pendants bring a little more presence in chrome, satin brass or brushed nickel and come in a small and a large size.

Ranges like Chester, Rockford, Summit and Cape round out the choice across pendants and wall lights, so you can carry one clean look through a whole room. The simple forms group well over an island or a long bench, and a single pendant sits quietly as a feature without taking over.

Choosing contemporary lighting for your home

• Match the finish to your hardware. Tie the metal to tapware, handles or other lighting nearby.
• Cord or rod. A cord reads softer and more casual, a rod cleaner and more fixed.
• Scale and group. Size to the surface below, and run matching pendants over an island.
• Use it as contrast. A clean contemporary piece can lift a traditional room rather than fight it.

Browse the full range on our contemporary lighting page. For a warmer retro take see our mid-century lighting guide, and our guide to finishes to get the metal right.