Metal is the plainest material for a pendant, and that is the point: it holds a shape and takes a finish, so the light reads as a line or a globe rather than a shade. Brass warms a room, black steel sharpens it, and aluminum keeps it light.

What metal does for a pendant

Without a shade to diffuse it, a metal pendant is judged on its outline and its finish, and the light comes from the shape itself: a dome throws it down, a globe spreads it, a bar runs it along a surface. Angelica, Avery, and Kinsley are solid brass, Angelica with five or thirteen lights, Avery a globe and Kinsley a dome, both in brushed gold or matte black. Aurelius folds steel into a sculptural plate in jet black or polished gold. Luka is an LED bar in black or copper, Sylas a stack of 20 to 40 light bars, Wavey a rippled aluminum shade in matte black, Jetta a minimalist gold aluminum drop, and Emma a pendant in gold and pearl black.

How to choose the right size

Domes and globes work in rows: pendants of 8 to 12 inches across, two or three over an island, spaced 24 to 30 inches apart, with odd numbers often balancing best. A linear piece such as Luka or Sylas runs about two-thirds of the island's length, so a 96-inch island takes Luka at 150 cm or Sylas at 40 bars. Over a dining table, one pendant about 12 inches narrower than the table. Hang the bottom 30 to 36 inches above the surface. All nine are tagged for 8 to 9-foot ceilings and eight for angled ceilings.

Styles and rooms across the range

A row of brass domes suits a mid-century kitchen; a black bar suits a white one; Aurelius alone over a table is sculpture. Emma and Jetta are the quiet minimal pieces for a hallway or a bedside. The same brass carries into the brass sconces on the wall, and where the room wants a shade rather than an outline, the alabaster and stone pendants page sits alongside. The wider pendant lighting collection holds everything else.

All nine are hardwired and warm white, and every one except Wavey dims from the wall switch. Choose the shape for the job first, then the finish to match the room's hardware.