Trend 9
Bathing in light

11/15

Photo: Villeroy & Boch 

Background: Dornbracht 

What’s happening in the field of bathroom lighting right now is nothing short of a revolution. Yet even though lighting and bathrooms might be an inseparable couple right now, their relationship is anything but longstanding. The bathroom’s enlightenment is relatively recent and a direct result of 12-volt technology and innovative LEDs. The bathroom still has the DIN standards very much “under its skin”, and for way too long planners and fitters had to be mindful of specified protection zones. In future, bathrooms and bathroom professionals alike can look forward to an abundance of totally new options. 

Photo: Tece 

Photo: Duscholux 

When designing a bathroom, the focus should be on how it is used and experienced. Forward-looking bathrooms use the possibilities provided by modern lighting to implement the relevant planning approaches in the best possible way for the customer. Light influences and enhances the architecture, the way materials are perceived and the usability of functions in a very special way. Almost every category of bathroom products now boasts items equipped with their own light sources, whereby it is important to differentiate between mood and task lighting. 

 

The washbasin is as brightly lit as a workstation – perfect for applying eyeliner – and even the shower has ceased to be a dark, gloomy corner and is now properly illuminated. In fact, the washbasin and matching furniture are the starting point for any modern lighting design. Illuminated shadow gaps make furniture appear to float, and ingenious lighting systems are showing the interiors of mirror cabinets, drawers and storage doors in a new and atmospheric light that can range in colour from warm to cold white. Nightlights point the way to the toilet in the semi-darkness and let sleeping partners doze undisturbed when their other half makes a nocturnal trip to the bathroom. Besides pointing people in the right direction, light can also be used to indicate functions when they’re needed: in future, household technology specialist Tece from Emsdetten will be offering the actuator function familiar from its TECElux toilet terminal in the form of a separate push plate. Based on the size of the typical standard Tece plates, the TECElux Mini measures 220 x 150 millimetres. The new development is equipped with a sensor that detects the approaching user and responds by illuminating the control elements for the dual flush technology through the seamless glass plate. A light touch is all that’s needed to activate the flush, which also responds to gesture control when the user is in close range. Even light sculptures are feasible in the bathroom nowadays: trendy and energy-saving LED lighting can be used to accentuate the laser-engraved design on the inside of shower enclosures.