Behind the scenes
Erik Steffensen
“The light wall poses a nice irony - an austere modernist vernacular made soft and sensuous by candlelight.”
inspirations: Artist Agnes Martin for “her exquisite subtlety and the way she creates a deep space out of flatness.” Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona Pavilion and New York’s Seagram Building for “the three-dimensionality of the big flat slabs and planes. I love when the back-ground becomes the thing itself and the object dissolves into the background.”
favorite material: Painted wood.
lighting: Illuminated Lattice, a three-dimensional system of cross-shaped pieces lit with suspended votive candles. “It’s been used as a 23-foot backdrop for a Miami Beach restaurant and as an 11-foot-wide bed headboard in Beverly Hills.”
why l.a.? “Los Angeles craftsmen are sophisticated. They understand the level of quality that has to be achieved. They’re used to working with artists.”
appeared in: “Will & Grace.”
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Kevin Kolanowski
“I feel my pieces are becoming more couture-like -- I ‘m inspired by fashion.”
Inspirations: Fashion. “I get a lot of fashion magazines. I see a shape, the way something is stitched together. The seashell chandelier was inspired by a dress I’d seen.”
favorite materials: Metal, seashells, citrine, rock crystal, alabaster.
lighting: Gilpin chandelier, a 30-inch-square chandelier composed of 1,200 hand-threaded iridescent Capiz shells that can be reconfigured into various shapes, such as a hanging column. “I loved how the shells glowed as they caught the light. I thought they would make a great light fixture.”
why l.a.? “To be honest, there’s more expendable income, and people are more open-minded to try new things here than in older cities.” appeared in: “Will & Grace”; House Beautiful and Southern Accents magazines.
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Shannon Shapiro
“Lighting is absolutely crucial to a room. It sets the mood and adds warmth, in addition to the practical aspect of letting
you see your surroundings.”
inspirations: Tony Duquette; actress Kirsten Dunst’s collection of star-shaped objects; Nordic and Swedish interiors; nature. “My next line is cast reindeer-horn sconces. I try to have a sense of humor, making fun of the elitism of interior design. In using animal horns as decoration, I’m not actually using the real thing but making them out of resin and steel so that we’re not taking from the environment.”
favorite materials: Lucite, laminated photo-chemical paper, steel.
lighting: Urchin light, a 22-by-12-inch Lucite sconce that can be hung vertically or horizontally.
why l.a.? “There’s a lot more access to nature. L.A. is also much more progressive. There’s an edginess-we’re seeing it in fashion and art. People are more willing to be open to new ideas and forms.”
appeared in: “Will & Grace”; Elle, Decor magazine.
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Martin Bilben
“There is a balance inherent in each piece of my work that is inspired by things in nature, such as snails and pine cones.”
inspirations: Mathematics in nature. “A seashell, for instance, boils down to a Fibonacci sequence, which is a numbering sequence. You can map out the sequence in a series of numbers and see a living creation.”
favorite materials: Acrylic, plastic, Rite Dye and PETG “the same material Coke bottles are made out of.”
lighting: Plurchin pendant of clear plastic. “All my lighting fixtures are very versatile. They can be made into floor lights, pendants or sconces.”
appeared in: The film “Shut Yer Dirty Little Mouth” and Godsmack’s music video “Greed.”
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True Colors
Stefan Lawrence is the owner and creative director of Twentieth, a dual emporium of vintage 20th century furnishings in one showroom and the work of local modernist-inspired designers in another. It’s a favorite resource for set decorators, with prop rentals making up 30% of the business. “Stylists come in two or three times a day for films, TV sit-coms, music videos, commercials and still-life ads,” says Lawrence.
Modernism is the common thread that links the two showrooms. He describes his custom-made Lucite lighting, which he developed with designer Daniele Albright, as “mood-enhancing color fields.” Reminiscent of a Mark Rothko painting-”only electrified”-the dimming incandescent tube produces a sheet of graduated color. “We wanted to create a light that’s all about the emotion of color and how it vibrates in a room,” says Lawrence.
The lights come in 20 hues, from bronze to indigo, and in sizes ranging from standard squares to oversized custom pieces. “There’s really no limit to the size,” he says. “We could probably make one as large as a wall.”
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RESOURCE GUIDE
Kevin Kolanowski, K Inc., Los Angeles, (310) 652-2411, www.k-inc-lighting.com. K Inc. 30-inch-square Gilpin chandelier with satin nickel finish frame, $6,820, at Thomas Lavin, Los Angeles, (310) 278-2456.
Shannon Shapiro, lighting and interior designer, Moth Design, Sherman Oaks, (818) 906-9992. Urchin Lucite sconce, $2,485, at Thomas Lavin, Los Angeles, (310) 278-2456. Martin Bilben Plurchin dyed plastic pendant, $375, at Plasticratic, Los Angeles, (323) 465-7365, www.plasticratic.com.
Stefan Lawrence and Daniele Albright Luma wall lights, 16-inch, $850; 24-inch, $1,400; 45-by-34-inch, $1,700, at Twentieth, Los Angeles, (323) 904-1200.