This talented lighting duo are illuminating homes around the world with their award-winning designs.

If lighting is the jewellery of the home, then Nightworks Studio’s elegant designs are treasures worn on special occasions. The Christchurch-based company is headed by Ben and Kiri Wahrlich, a husband-and-wife team whose complementary skills meld to make award-winning lighting.

Ben and Kiri Wahrlich of Nightworks Studio.

Kiri, who has a background in graphic design, and Ben, a mechanical engineer and product designer, began their careers working for different design agencies in Sydney. When they joined forces professionally in 2010, their first product was a leather pendant that sold like hotcakes. It was clear a future in lighting design lay ahead. After relocating back to their New Zealand homeland in 2017, business is even brighter as they sell their designs in Aotearoa, Australia and further afield.

“For us [working together] was a natural progression: we both have a love for design — and we have similar aesthetics and ideas. But we both have strengths in different areas which creates clear roles within our team,” says Kiri.

“Lighting design is a niche; there’s only a handful of lighting designers in New Zealand. We love the challenge that it presents. We have to work within the technical confines of electronics whilst still creating something beautiful and artistic,” adds Ben.

Pendant lights from the Code range can be grouped together in different configurations.

The pair say they are incredibly humbled by the reception they’ve had since returning to New Zealand.

“We’ve felt really welcome by the design community and the work/life balance in Otautahi Christchurch is brilliant. We absolutely love living here,” Ben says. One of Nightworks Studio’s designs, the Tasman Pendant series, recently won the international Red Dot Award. This design was inspired by the rough stretch of sea that divides Australia and New Zealand.

The award-winning Tasman pendant light. 

“It’s unique and different to other lineal pendants; it’s also sculptural and modular. The Tasman connects New Zealand and Australia (our main markets) and lends itself well as a name since we referenced this for the colours too,” explains Ben.

“In our industry, the Red Dot Award is the highest accolade we can receive. We are incredibly honoured to be one of the few New Zealand companies to receive it, as only a handful are selected from over 20,000 plus entries,” adds Kiri.

Kiri and Ben love working with brass in their designs, due to its malleability and natural ageing. Inspiration comes from many places but they always design with “process-led thinking”, meaning they focus on manufacturing techniques to create an end product that’s functional and well-constructed as well as beautiful. This practicality filters down to the advice they give homeowners when choosing lighting for new builds and renovations. “Spend the money on good lighting because it’s worth it in the long run. Timeless design and well-made products are not only more sustainable because you buy once, buy right — but also greatly improve the sense of quality of the build and resale value,” says Ben.

The Duomo Piccolo wall sconce is one of Nightworks Studio’s most popular lights as it has a high waterproof rating, making it suitable for bathrooms and exteriors.

He points out that you don’t need fancy lighting everywhere though. “When it comes to bathroom wall lighting, it’s imperative to have something unique, because you look at it every day. Entry lights make a good first impression and an interesting piece above the table is a discussion piece and can set the mood.”

LED lighting is now the norm in smart homes as products such as app-controlled dimmers become more popular. So they shouldn’t be an afterthought.

“LED lights are low energy, long lasting and energy efficient. The most common problem we see is that this needs to be considered right from the design stage of the build, to allow for the power supplies and dimming controls necessary,” says Kiri. “LED products run on dedicated power supplies, so make sure your electrician reads the install guides and runs extra wires for the dimming and control systems accordingly,” adds Ben. www.nightworksstudio.com