InteriorsLight is like painting - it's hard to describe how you get it right, says designer Brian McDonald.
PEOPLE TALK ABOUT light bulb moments. Designer Brian McDonald had one when he was run over by an 87-year-old granny in a Cherokee jeep. "I was wearing all black in the snow - it was destiny," says McDonald, who said the accident made him rethink his life and put him on the right track in terms of his talents.
McDonald emigrated to the US in 1984 and as a qualified electrician found himself in the US Air Force, where he designed alarm systems for weapons storage. From there, he became involved in their "rapid readiness" teams where he oversaw the setting up of bases with as little as 24 hours notice - it was invaluable experience in terms of delivering to deadlines and working on the hoof.
After the accident, McDonald had plenty of time to think. He spent a year recovering from a broken back. He got to thinking how lighting was under-valued and misunderstood by a lot of people. "It is the single most important element of any interior or exterior, yet when it comes to illumination and mood making, most designers work off a spec sheet or from legislation demands. People always shy away from it," he says.
Light is delicate, explains the designer. "You need to be able to bring it to life with a sense of feeling and touch." Light is like painting, it's hard to describe how to get it right - it's quite innate, explains McDonald. "I like to paint with light to create different grades and mood," he continues. "I close my eyes and paint and let it dictate the mood. I don't really know how I do it."
The soft spoken, New York-born designer cut his teeth working with Hugh O'Regan when the latter headed up the Thomas Read Group. "I got design and build knowledge from creating all of Hugh's pubs," he explains. "I know the corners that can and can't be cut." Ron Blacks on Dublin's Dawson Street was one of his creations.
While he trained his eye designing pubs and hostelries, his speciality seems to be hotels. Projects include the Morrison, also with Hugh O'Regan, and The Morgan and Beacon for Paul Fitzpatrick. More recently, he worked on The Twelve hotel in Barna, Galway.
It's all about reinventing ideas, says McDonald. "The Twelve is a combination of the eclectic and craft. A lot of effort went into designing and redesigning the interior and everything is bespoke. That's what these places call for." More projects in Berlin and Edinburgh are in the offing.
In his work for the Jameson Distillery, he took the barley element from traditional Jameson pub mirrors, and blew it up to use as decoration for the bar. It has created an almost holographic look, says the designer. He has also worked on Café Noir, a prototype for a new cafe franchise which recently opened its first set of doors on Robert Street in Limerick.
But his first love is lighting. And he's keen to get back to his roots. Temple Bar Properties have asked him to take a look at relighting the area. This is a project he's hoping to do in conjunction with American artist and master of light, James Terrell.
"We're looking at creating an installation," says McDonald. "The concept is to change the mood by colour, which can be transformed by the flick of a switch. At midnight on Saturday night, I'd say it should be red or blue to help create a calm atmosphere. Public safety levels of light also need to be factored into the idea."
The second love in his life is art. The Sebastian Guinness Gallery at 18 Eustace Street is another space enhanced by McDonald. He encased a Georgian room with studding to create a contemporary New York white box. "The wooden floors, walls and ceiling were all painted white to create a foggy feeling that gives the art a fighting chance to pop out at you."
Art plays a major design role at home where he has several Clea Van der Grijn pieces, one of which the artist gave him for designing her apartment. He admits to doing a bit of bartering. "I have two pieces by Corban Walker, which he gave me for helping him with a sell-out exhibition he had in the Green On Red gallery." Some Siobhan McDonald pieces and a "beautifully simple" Patrick Scott also fill walls.
McDonald is interested in creating lighting that is more work-of-art than work-a-day. He uses large-scale lampshades throughout his house and there are no downlighters except in the bathroom.
"I play around with light at home. Some of my furniture design prototypes are scattered about the place and there's a tall lamp that was part of the fit-out of The Twelve. It's a hand-turned piece of oak that works as a lampstand. The lampshade has layers of ruby red and black organza to create peek-a-boo lighting. It oozes sex appeal."
Another example is a central light pendant, made out of wood beams but shaped like a chandelier. "It now hangs over our dinner table and it throws the craziest shadows so you get to play with the negative of the light," he says. There's also vintage furniture that the designer has reupholstered, as well as remodelled pianos which have been painted and lacquered.
McDonald tends to bring home samples of wallpapers and colours from jobs and plays around with them at home first to see how they look. "My wife, Olivia hates the fact that I bring home my work."
The couple are in the process of building their own house. "And I'll be able to play with light an awful lot better in a start-from-scratch project. I'm exploring wind power and other sustainable energies."
For anyone thinking of upgrading their lighting systems, McDonald suggests trying dark lights instead of the more usual downlighters. They sit up higher in the ceiling rather than flush with the ceiling, so all you see is a pool of light, he says.
What's next for McDonald? He's looking to manufacture some prototypes he did for an exhibition 15 years ago. "Some are off the planet, but some are worth revisiting." Whatever is next, McDonald will continue to fly under the radar and that's just the way he likes it.
Brian McDonald can be contacted at Design Farm on 01-6711800, www.designfarm.ie