At Home With Botond Wertán and Luca Rózsa Sára

“Light really works when you don't notice it — you just feel that it's pleasant to be in the space.”
In the latest installment of Solinfo's At Home With series, we visited the home of photographer–videographer Botond Wertán and his partner, visual artist Luca Rózsa Sára.
The apartment is not streamlined, not minimalist, and it doesn't try to follow any interior trend: it's a living space filled with paintings, prints, personal objects and plants, constantly changing and breathing with its inhabitants.

The project presented a twofold challenge.
For Solinfo Group’s home styling and lighting design team, the question was how to introduce modern, clean accessories and small furniture to refresh such a personal, eclectic environment — without overpowering the existing layers, but gently supporting them.

For Botond and Luca, the big step was giving technical lighting a chance and letting go of a beloved, iconic chandelier in favor of a new quality of light.
The result of the collaboration was not a dramatic makeover, but a sensitive balance: in light, objects and mood.What does home mean to you?
Botond:
Home, for me, is a very personal, constantly changing space. I don't like a “finished” state. I like things to come and go, to be rearranged and replaced. The little objects I surround myself with are like that: they have stories, memories attached to them, and from time to time they find new places.
Luca:
To me, home is the place where we can live with everything that matters to us — the artworks, the works of our friends. It's not always easy because the presence of art can be intense, but that intensity is what brings the space to life. I feel the same about design objects. Many beautiful pieces exist, but only those that can truly become part of our everyday life really work. Those that don't try to do too much and don't overpower what is already there.

That's exactly what we looked for with Solinfo Group's home stylist team: accessories and small furniture that don't “sit on” the space, but integrate naturally — as if they had always been there.Almost every wall and shelf is full of objects. Can you tell us about them?
Botond:
I've always been drawn to little things. As a child I saw an old printing type tray mounted on a wall with many small compartments — it stuck with me so much that I started collecting all sorts of small items. Old cameras, special mementos, tiny books, carvings, even a Cuban cigar or a penny case from a London phone booth. These items are constantly rotated: if something no longer contributes, it goes away and something else comes in.
Luca:
The walls are mostly covered with paintings, drawings and prints — many by friends and fellow artists. It's wonderful to live with these works. We also have small sculptures: one from a sculptor friend, another made by an autistic little boy — to me that's priceless. And of course the plants: we have lots of them because they add so much to the feeling of home.Why did you feel you needed lighting design?
Botond:
The apartment faces east, which is wonderful in the morning, but natural light fades quickly in the afternoon. With our previous lighting we could only create a yellowish, evening mood — even in the early afternoon. We were curious what could be achieved professionally, how to light the space so that at one in the afternoon it wouldn't feel like evening.
Luca:
I was mostly interested in how it would affect my wellbeing, because I really felt the lack of natural light.

How was Solinfo’s approach different?
Botond:
They thought in terms of light rather than fixtures. They suggested not using direct lights but illuminating walls and vertical surfaces so the light would bounce back. That way you don't see the fixtures — you get a continuous, diffused base light.
Luca:
I was a bit afraid of technical lighting — that it would feel alien in the space. But it was a very positive surprise. It feels almost like natural light, and that makes a huge difference to my mood. You don't feel like “the lamp is on,” yet everything is clearly visible.How does a track system fit into such a characterful space?
Luca:
Surprisingly well. It doesn't steal attention or try to perform. It stays in the background while doing exactly what it needs to do.
Botond:
It's also very flexible. We had a large chandelier of 13 white globes that was hard to let go of emotionally, but we had to admit it didn't work well in the space. The track system can be expanded and adapted, even used with pendants — that kind of freedom is very important to us.

What did the lighting ultimately add to the apartment?
Luca:
Calm. A kind of constant sense of wellbeing. Light strongly affects mood, and here I really feel that it's nice to be in the space.
Botond:
For me the best feedback is that I don't “see” the lighting. I just feel that everything is in its right place.What do you think is the essence of good lighting design?
Luca:
I think it's adaptability. It doesn't impose a style on the space, it supports what is already there.
Botond:
Yes. Light really works when it doesn't try to be the star — it quietly helps make the space livable.