9 Art Show Display Lighting Ideas

9 photos of art show display lighting ideas teach you how to light a craft fair booth.

Overhead Art Show Display Lighting

Adjustable swing arm lamps are secured above each of the portable art display panels in the booth pictured below.

Adjustable lights provide plenty of flexibility to direct light wherever it is needed if the artist chooses to use different booth configurations for different shows.

Notice the wooden pole visible in the upper right corner of the image. It's not visible in the photo, but that pole is secured to art display panels at the front right corner of the booth. It provides a base to support the cord for the light in the middle of the booth.

Sometimes, you'll need to rig up a creative solution to provide consistent lighting through your entire 10 x 10 display space.

Have you ever wondered why you can't just rely on the overhead lighting in the hall where your craft show is taking place? This photo clearly shows why you must include good booth lighting in your display design.

Notice the difference between the lighting in the booth space, and the lighting outside of the booth.

The booth is so much brighter than the area around it.

Overhead lights in a convention hall or community center will not show your work at its best.

Overhead Clothing Booth Lighting

The next example of great art show display lighting shows another solution for setting up portable overhead lights.

The clothing booth pictured below uses a track suspended across the front of the booth to support overhead lights.

Notice there are 10 lights across the front of the booth.

One or two craft show lights will not be enough to illuminate your entire 10 x 10 booth space. You'll need several lights, so each one light can be positioned to brighten all areas of your booth.

Strip Lights for Portable Display Shelves

Look closely at the portable display shelves pictured below. Each row of shelves has portable strip lights attached to the underside.

Shelves are an excellent way to make good use of the full height of your booth space, but you do need to be careful to ensure the bottom rows are not lost in darkness. Rows of lights attached to the bottom of each shelf will prevent this problem.

Puck Lights for Display Shelves

Puck lights are another good art show display lighting option when you use shelves in your booth.

The shelves pictured below are divided into shorter sections, so long lengths of strip lights wouldn't make sense here. Smaller puck lights work perfectly in this space. 

Overhead Craft Show Lights

Here's another example of a craft show booth with overhead lighting suspended on a bar across the front of the booth.

The vendor uses a metal frame and white curtains to form the foundation of the booth. The bar used to support the overhead lights is suspended from that frame, and cords are placed across the top to keep them out of the way.

Hidden Art Show Display Lighting

You can't see the lights anywhere in this next photo.

So why did it make it onto a page about craft show lighting?

You can't see the lights, but you absolutely know they are there. From the top shelf to the bottom shelf, every piece of this beautiful handmade tableware gleams.

Clearly, portable strip lights have been carefully placed under each shelf to light up the space and show this handmade tableware at its best.

Overhead Lighting on 3 Sides of the Booth

This clothing booth features overhead lighting from three sides of the booth.

Similar to previous examples, this booth uses a metal frame with white curtains to form the foundation of the display space. Portable gooseneck lights are clipped around the top bars of the metal frame.

Cords for the lights are wrapped around the bar to keep them out of the way and neatly out of sight.

Angled Overhead Display Booth Lighting

This portable t-shirt display booth is lit up with several overhead craft show lights mounted on a bar across one corner of the booth.

As we've seen in other examples, the designer chose portable track lights that can pivot to direct the light into all spaces of the booth.

Inconspicuous Display Lighting

This final photo featuring good craft display lighting is another example of effective but inconspicuous lighting.

The lights for this booth are tucked discreetly under the shelves. White cords run neatly down one side of each row of shelves and blend unnoticed with the white display walls.