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When most of us walk into a room and flip on a light switch, we don’t look up unless the bulb is blown — and fewer still glance admiringly at the fixture itself. The handcrafted creations of US lighting designer Lindsey Adelman turn that notion on its head. “I think lighting, the kind of lighting I do, by nature it has space to be so sculptural and expressive,” Adelman said in a phone interview with CNN. Unlike most sculpture, it’s not constrained by floor space or gravity, she added. Her pieces have been exhibited in design galleries around the world to international acclaim, and with her meticulous focus on craftsmanship, they can command a premium: a small wall sconce costs nearly $5,000 and a single chandelier can go for tens of thousands of dollars. A path illuminated by craft Adelman’s journey into lighting design wasn’t a straight one. In the early 1990s, as an editorial assistant at the Smithsonian Institution working on catalog content, she toured the museum’s workshop. There, artisans were building intricate displays for interactive exhibits. Watching them move around, sculpting Styrofoam and physically engaging with their work, had an impact on Adelman. “It just really spoke to me, like (I was at) a crossroads for the type of career I wanted to have,” she said. That encounter led her to enroll at the Rhode Island School of Design, where she earned a master’s in industrial design and learned the fabrication techniques that would define her work. Blending fine craftsmanship with industrial precision became her trademark. Breaking habits, shaping light In 2005, Adelman began rethinking the standard components used in modern lighting — metal tubing, fittings, and glass — and saw new potential in their shapes. “I could just see that these could also be used for forms that were really animated… with more personality… (a light) sort of having fun with itself,” she said. A year later, her Branching Bubble chandelier — a metal frame with arms that branch out, holding hand-blown glass bubble-shaped shades — debuted, launching her career and turning her into an icon of contemporary lighting. Two decades later, that balance between handmade artistry and technical ingenuity still defines her creations. Inside her New York studio, Adelman, 57, and her small team experiment with chemical reactions, metal finishes and blown glass techniques to produce unique, sculptural pieces, still proving that light itself can be a work of art. A craft-forward approach Adelman’s work unites engineering and craftsmanship, often drawing inspiration from art history. Dutch artist Piet Mondrian’s abstract compositions, defined by strong horizontal and vertical lines, influenced Adelman’s Drop System chandelier — a balance of hand-polished brass tubing and hand-blown mini-globes in a made-to-order geometric sculptural display. The 76-bulb version of the Drop System chandelier starts at over $91,000. “Lighting design is really a service,” Adelman said. “It’s a lot about solving problems.” And in that problem-solving process is where the artistry emerges. Her lighting has been exhibited in the US and Europe, with shows at Milan’s Nilufar Gallery, and Triode design gallery in Paris, as well as displays in Geneva and Beirut. David Alhadeff, founder of the New York gallery The Future Perfect, has represented Adelman’s work for more than two decades. “I’m constantly inspired by her, she’s not just designing light — she’s shaping the way we experience it,” he said. “Every piece she creates carries her unmistakable hand, bridging sculpture and function in a way that feels both personal and timeless.” As an artisan who views light as a living thing, Adelman is constantly looking for different ways to give it a new form. Old-world inspiration, new-world expression Her Overglow pendant light collection, which debuted in September, nods to the traditional caged-glass streetlights that illuminated the canals of 16th-century Venice. Each pendant, as described by Darc magazine features “cushion-like, mouth-blown” globes that appear to expand through a delicate metal frame. Adelman told CNN that the method used to create the Overglow globes was “fun to follow.” “It’s kind of this meeting of experimental with a form that’s a lot more traditional than I usually work with.” While many designers chase the next smart lighting trend, Adelman takes a subtler approach. “LEDs are quite beautiful now with the color temperature,” she said. “Sometimes they’re integrated into the light fixture themselves.” Andrea Hartranft, president of the Illinois-based International Association of Lighting Designers, said to CNN in an email: “Lighting designers work at the intersection of art and science, balancing design, regulation and technology. The tools available today expand the scope of what lighting can achieve.” “Designers now benefit from higher-quality light sources that expand creative possibilities,” she added. “This evolution means that energy efficiency no longer comes at the expense of aesthetics.” Adelman’s upcoming Andromeda series, expected to debut next spring, continues that exploration of balance — experimenting with marble veneers “which can be sliced… to like a millimeter thick,” layered over metal to create a soft, diffused effect, she explained. Rather than expanding production to meet global demand, Adelman is considering plans to downsize in 2026, producing more limited runs, one-of-a-kind lights and specialty pieces. “I was sort-of always about prioritizing… quality over quantity,” she said. “It just seems like a better fit for where I am in my career — and what’s important to me.” For Adelman, light isn’t just functional; it’s emotional — and represents the intersection of material, movement, and imagination. Two decades after her first chandelier redefined what handmade lighting could be, she’s still chasing that same spark.
