While the concentrated light of a spotlight compels us to take center stage, the soft glow of a shaded lamp invites us to decompress and settle in. Through his new collections Touch and Strut, Coil + Drift founder John Sorensen-Jolink explores how different lighting can affect a room and its inhabitants. Presented together in Lookout, a new exhibition at Colony in New York, the designer contrasts intentional illumination with atmospheric glow, offering a nuanced look at how light shapes our domestic environments.
As a contemporary dancer turned designer, Sorensen-Jolink understands the profound significance of light. Whether it is guiding focus, capturing movement, or establishing a specific mood and ambiance, lighting fundamentally shifts people’s experience of a space. He explores this ongoing relationship in Touch and Strut, working closely with a specialized team of in-house artisans to translate his deep-seated understanding of human movement and spatial design into sculptural lighting fixtures.
The exhibition, which serves as a comprehensive showcase of Coil + Drift’s latest design trajectory, draws heavily from Sorensen-Jolink’s personal history and his current surroundings. The changing light surrounding his studio in the Catskills acts as a constant source of inspiration, bridging the gap between raw, natural phenomena and refined domestic craftsmanship.
Reimagining the Domestic Spotlight in Touch
Touch reimagines the theatrical spotlight as a domestic object, drawing direct inspiration from Sorensen-Jolink’s early encounters with theatrical lighting during his formative years. Growing up in a home that had been renovated by a theater worker, he was constantly surrounded by dimly lit interiors where recessed and track lighting cast concentrated pools of light onto the floors and walls.
Though he was initially resistant to this dominant, impersonal light source in his youth, Sorensen-Jolink ultimately returns to the concept of the spotlight with a hands-on, tactile approach in his Touch collection. Constructed primarily from rich brass or durable steel, the pieces in the collection feature adjustable, cylindrical shades and slender stems. These mechanical components allow users to pivot the beams of light effortlessly, while carefully integrated wooden accents emphasize warmth and tactility.
Rather than remaining fixed and static, Touch allows light to shift dynamically in response to the layout and needs of the room, successfully balancing mechanical precision with the intimacy of human touch. It is an exploration of visibility and retreat.
“When you’re in a pool of light, you’re on, you’re performing,” Sorensen-Jolink explains, reflecting on the psychological impact of concentrated illumination. “When you step out, you can sort of disappear.”
This interplay between performance and privacy runs through each piece in the collection, turning functional illumination into an interactive experience. The adjustable nature of the lamps encourages users to become active participants in their living spaces, directing beams to highlight specific architectural features, art pieces, or quiet reading nooks, before shifting the focus away when a softer environment is desired.
Crafting Quiet Ambiance with Strut
While Touch fosters focus and intentional engagement, the companion collection Strut introduces a quiet ambiance intended to support the everyday, unscripted rhythms of a modern home. Where the former collection looks to the stage, Strut draws its inspiration from a very different kind of structure: the exposed wooden frameworks of fire lookout towers scattered across the Catskill and Rocky Mountains.
The collection translates this quiet, rugged utility into sophisticated wooden lighting fixtures characterized by subtle metal detailing and an intentional, thoughtful use of negative space. The structures are paired with elongated linen shades, which are inspired in part by Sorensen-Jolink’s personal collection of vintage cloth-shaded lamps. Together, these elements emit an enveloping, gentle glow that is strongly reminiscent of a glowing ember or a crackling campfire at dusk.
This warm, diffused light serves to ground the room, creating an atmosphere of safety, calm, and domestic refuge. By stepping away from harsh directional beams, Strut embraces the shadows and corners of a room, allowing inhabitants to unwind completely at the end of a long day.
A Balanced Approach to Modern Living
Together, the Touch and Strut collections embody two contrasting yet complementary approaches to domestic illumination. Both lines are deeply informed by the shifting patterns of natural light surrounding Sorensen-Jolink’s Catskills studio, where the interplay of bright forest clearings and deep canopy shade sets a daily rhythm.
Through their distinct forms, exceptional material selections, and thoughtful engineering, Touch and Strut successfully balance focused illumination with softer, ambient light. In doing so, they introduce the natural, cyclical rhythms of sun and shade directly into the contemporary home, bridging the gap between functional design and emotional well-being.
Lookout is on view until October 21 at Colony Gallery in New York City.
