Light is the single most important element of displaying any object. From paintings and photographs to artifacts and displays, art is light and lighting is an art. From any perspective, the most perfect light is fully diffused sunlight containing the most balanced spectrum within the eye’s visual range. This is why optimal gallery design maximizes daylighting. However, even sunlight has significant drawbacks that include excessive ultraviolet (UV) spectrum and radiant heat. As the sun moves through the day, the spectral range significantly changes, altering the appearance of colors, contours, and reflective surfaces. Curators must avoid positioning sensitive artwork or objects where they can encounter direct sun.

The objective of artificial lighting is to mimic indirect sunlight and eliminate negative features like UV, heat, and spectral bias and our sustainable museum lighting is designed to do just that. Unfortunately, many museums and galleries have design conflicts between décor and displays. Warm light may be appropriate for illuminating floors, ceilings, and furnishings, but completely wrong for resolving colors and textures within a painting, photograph, or sculpture. Art-Bright™ technology is a synergistic lighting “system” that combines spectrally tuned magnetic induction bulbs and ballasts with ultra-reflective full diffusion nano-coatings to provide the truest representation of illuminated objects.

There is a reason diamonds are viewed under natural northern light. The sun’s full spectrum is available absent glare and without spectral bias. Unquestionably, light is the fundamental source of all gemstones’ beauty. From a gemological perspective, light is the single most critical element for determining quality and value. The best light for gemstones may not be available and up until the development of new Gem-Bright™ magnetic induction lights (MIL), gemologists and jewelers have had to work under sub-optimal light from sources like incandescent, fluorescent, halogen, metal halide, and LED lamps. All of these lighting technologies suffer from spectral bias and deficiencies relative to examining diamonds and colored gemstones. Ultra-Tech™ Lighting has developed a full spectrum light source with a diffusing reflector that provides ideal illumination for viewing and evaluating gems.

The objective in viewing and grading gems is to create as neutral a light as possible so that the light source does not prejudice the observation. This means the spectrum should be as uniform as possible over the visually perceived range from violet to red. To be sure, there are techniques that can reveal fluorescence using an ultraviolet “black light.” Gem-Bright™ fixtures provide sufficient light within the fluorescing spectrum to detect these characteristics and aside from natural lighting, Gem-Bright™ is one of the best lights for gemstone viewing.