Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1344682
L ighting is at the forefront of design, yet it's not always touted by museum exhibitions. Finally it's emerging from the darkness to get the love it deserves. Kudos to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, for organizing the traveling exhibition "Electrifying Design: A Century of Lighting" (through May 16, at the Law Building). The show marks the first sweeping historical survey of lighting innovators on the international stage, culling 85 objects that represent pioneering technological and artistic breakthroughs in the devices that illuminate our homes, offices, and public spaces. The exhibition is a rare Houston-Dallas collaboration, co-curated by the MFAH's Cindi Strauss, who heads up the Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design Department, and Sarah Schleuning of the Dallas Museum of Art. The survey looks at this luminous subject by traversing pivotal decades and three continents. From the austere beauty of the Bauhaus-manufactured Standard Lamp of 1926, designed by Wilhelm Wagenfeld, to the colorful whimsy of Memphis Milano-made Martine Bedin's Super Lamp, circa 1980s, a range of aesthetics and approaches gives lively voice to the discipline of lighting. Among the highlights are two works that venture into the surreal: Ingo Maurer's Porca Miseria! Hanging Lamp, designed 1994, made 2000, an explosion of porcelain that adds high drama to this show; and Moooi Works' Mega Chandelier, 2018, a witty tribute to maximalism that features an amalgamation of lamps from the Moooi collection.. mfah.org. Catherine D. Anspon I nterior decorators and those who love design have long looked to the Ballard Designs catalog and online site for key pieces to finish a room: ceramic lamps, skirted chairs with dressmaker detailing, and lampshades, along with larger furniture and upholstery. Bunny Williams, Suzanne Kasler, and Miles Redd all started out as devoted fans and have since created collections for the Atlanta–based company, which opens its first Houston brick-and-mortar store this month in River Oaks Shopping Center. The 10,885-square-foot space — Ballard's 16th location — has a selection of all of Ballard's collections in stock and offers the entire fabric assortment of more than 400 styles, as well as complimentary in-store design services. To kick things off, Ballard's podcast features a special edition with Houston designers. Ballard Designs, River Oaks Shopping Center, 1977 W. Gray St., ballarddesigns.com. Rebecca Sherman LET THERE BE LIGHT BALLARD IN BRICK AND MORTAR BEYOND EDISON AT THE MFAH Ballard Designs' Spring 2021 collection Moooi Works, 2018 Ron Arad, 2000 Toyo Ito, 2007 Ingo Maurer, 1994 58