Let’s Talk About Kevin
Author:Abigail StoneKevin Kolanowski, the designer behind Fuse Lighting, celebrates 25 years of illuminating the world
Careers are funny; as much a matter of luck as of planning, it takes hindsight to recognize that the twists and turns of our experiences have been preparing us for something perfectly customized to our talents and personalities. Witness Kevin Kolanowski, the founder of L.A.-based Fuse Lighting. He never intended to be a lighting designer—let alone be celebrating 25 years as the head of a successful lighting company. He was content in his career as an interior designer—a path he’d been pursuing since childhood. “It was either that or become a landscape designer,” he says. But Lady Luck had bigger dreams for him.
Photo by Chad Mellon.
It began with a request from a client. “We were working on a bathroom and we needed some sconces,” he shares. Disappointed with what they were finding, she suggested Kolanowski create something. “I told her that I’d never designed lighting. She didn’t care; she trusted me,” he says. “I had no clue what to do, and I didn’t know anyone who would be able to fabricate something.” During a visit to Reborn Antiques, the restoration company in the heart of the La Cienega Design Quarter, he crossed paths with a metal fabricator who agreed to work with him. “The process of producing a sample—creating something, adjusting the scale and the proportions, seeing it take shape—was so much fun. I was working with my hands, imagining something three-dimensional,” he remembers. “It was like sculpture.” He was hooked. Everything coalesced during a meeting with iconic showroom owner Thomas Lavin. “At the time, he was my salesperson at Kneedler Fauchere and asked me what I was up to,” he recalls. “I told him that I was designing some fixtures for a job and he looked at me astonished and said, ‘I didn’t know you had a lighting line.’” It turned out that Lavin was on the verge of launching his now-legendary showroom and was eager to represent Kolanowski’s work.
“The funny thing was that I didn’t have a lighting line; I had a few sketches of things I’d made for my client,” Kolanowski laughs. But Lavin saw the possibility of something revelatory. “From working with Kevin, I knew he had the vision and drive to create something extraordinary,” says Lavin. “Watching his transition from outsourcing production to his Los Angeles factory, where he handcrafts each piece, has been inspiring.” Driven by an artist’s eye, Kolanowski is fascinated by the interplay between light and texture. “His creative curiosity pushes him to fearlessly explore materials, from semiprecious gems to wood, glass and marble,” Lavin notes.
It’s balanced by his keen understanding of what his clients need; his work deftly straddles the line between traditional and modern. “Because I was an interior designer, I have an idea of where something is going to go when I’m designing it,” Kolanowski says. “There’s an intentionality to where I’m thinking a piece should be used in a space.” Lavin notes about Kolanowski’s creativity, “He possesses an unmistakably unique voice that sets him apart in the industry. It’s a testament to his dedication to craft and his willingness to keep pushing creative boundaries.”
