Could the future of lighting be marked by fewer products, but more carefully designed light?

This is exactly one of the messages of this year’s 3daysofdesign festival, held in Copenhagen from June 10 to 12, 2026. Under the motto “Make This Moment Matter”, more than 400 exhibitors presented design that does not rely only on novelty, but on meaning, durability, materials and the experience that the object creates.

This shift is particularly important in lighting. A lamp is no longer just a light source, a technical element or a decoration chosen at the end of a project. It becomes part of the atmosphere and identity of a space.

That’s why custom lighting is gaining an increasingly important role. Not because every space needs an unusual lamp, but because not every space requires the same light.

Lighting is re-examined through experience

When we talk about lighting, we often talk about lumens, color temperature, power, and energy consumption. These are all important values, but they don’t describe how we will feel in a space.

At the 3daysofdesign festival, lighting was presented alongside sound, furniture, textiles and architecture. Fritz Hansen’s Sound Club project, for example, explored how music, light and objects together shape the character of a space.

This shows a broader shift in design: individual products are no longer viewed in isolation. The value is found in their mutual relationship.

What does the user of the space actually remember?

A hotel or restaurant guest probably won’t know how many lumens a particular lamp produces. They won’t even remember its precise color temperature.

But they will remember:

• Did he feel comfortable in the space?
• Was the light too harsh or soothing?
• Could he clearly see the food, the person’s face, or interior details?
• Did the space seem cold, intimate or festive?
• Did the lighting have a character that wasn’t seen anywhere else?

Good lighting is therefore not just about what we see. It also influences the way we experience everything else.

From hoarding products to more careful selection

This year’s festival theme invited designers to think about what’s important now, instead of constantly producing new trends.

In lighting, this could mean moving away from spaces filled with a large number of unrelated lamps. Instead, the emphasis is placed on a few well-chosen elements that simultaneously address the function, atmosphere and identity of the interior.

This doesn’t mean that custom lighting is always the only solution. A quality off-the-shelf fixture can perfectly fit a space. But when standard dimensions, materials, or light distribution create a compromise, custom lighting becomes a viable option.

Softer light and a return to textiles

One of the noticeable trends in contemporary design is the return to tactile materials, textiles, and shades that soften light.

In an age when LED sources can be very powerful and compact, the challenge is no longer just to produce enough light. The challenge is to control it.

Textile shades, opal diffusers and thoughtful constructions can:

• reduce unpleasant glare
• to soften contrasts
• distribute the light more evenly
• to give warmth and visual softness to the space
• hide the technical source without losing functionality

The material is not just a finishing touch. It determines how the light emerges from the lamp and what relationship it creates with the surrounding surfaces.

Custom lighting as a response to space

Custom lighting doesn’t start with asking what a lamp should look like. It starts with understanding the space.

What is the ceiling height? From what distance will the lamp be viewed? Should it illuminate a table or create ambient light? What materials and colors are already used in the interior? How will the lamp be maintained?

When does custom lighting make the most sense?

It is especially useful when:

• standard dimensions do not correspond to the proportions of the space
• the lamp should follow the architectural concept
• special material, finish or paint required
• one element should unify a larger or irregular area
• the project requires some diffusion and glare control
• Lighting must be a recognizable part of the hotel or restaurant’s identity
• the possibility of later servicing and replacement of parts is required

In such projects, lighting is not a product inserted into the finished interior. It is created as an integral part of it.

Sustainability is becoming more important than the current trend

A more meaningful design also means a longer product lifespan. This is especially important for lighting installed in hotels, restaurants and commercial spaces, where replacing the entire system is a cost and organizational problem.

A long-lasting lamp should allow for maintenance, replacement of sources or electronic components, and renewal of shades and finishes.

Custom lighting has an important advantage here: the manufacturing method, materials and construction are known. Therefore, the lamp can often be repaired, adapted or refurbished, rather than completely replaced.

The future of lighting is not just about new technology

Technology will continue to change lighting. Sources will become more efficient, controls smarter, and customization options greater.

However, good lighting will not be created just by adding new functions. It will be created by carefully connecting technology, materials, crafts and the needs of the people who live in the space.

The message from Copenhagen is therefore not a call for less ambition, but for more thought. Fewer haphazardly chosen products, and more light that has a clear purpose.

Because custom lighting isn’t only valuable when it catches the eye. It’s most valuable when it gives a space exactly what it was missing.