The Acropolis of Athens is one of the most important monuments of world culture. A living symbol that has stood the test of time, and is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world. On the 30th of September 2020, the new lighting of the Acropolis and its monuments, funded and supported by the Onassis Foundation, was unveiled to the world.
Eleftheria Deko and Associates approached the monuments first with respect. Before applying their thoughts on paper they observed the characteristics of this unique place, studied its history, the forms and materials, the visibility from different points of the city, and the significance of this landmark.
Their design approach was to highlight the beauty of the architecture, the timelessness of sculptures, the whiteness of the Pendelikon marble in contrast to the robustness of the Sacred rock, and the heroism of the fortification walls. We achieved the differentiation by the use of different focusing angles, differentiation of color temperatures, and of light intensity. Lastly, Eleftheria Deko and Associates’ lighting vision was to make the site look outstanding at night from multiple directions both up close and from afar, and bring new life into the monuments of the Acropolis.
Here is a video of the making of, production of the Onassis foundation.
Founder of the award-winning lighting studio Eleftheria Deko & Associates, Eleftheria Deko and her team started to work on the Acropolis of Athens and other Athenian monuments in January 2020. They have been working days and nights on this project, having only 45 days to deliver the lighting study and complete the whole project in nine months from the assignment. The “Acropolis of Athens” project has received the “LIT Lighting Design of the Year” award for 2021. Eleftheria shares with us her design vision for this unique realization, as well as for her upcoming projects!
Could you tell us a little about yourself? How did you discover your passion for lighting design?
I have been working as a lighting designer since 1990. That is 31 years!
I have designed lighting for more than 600 theater, music, dance, and opera performances, for public events, multimedia shows, exhibitions, as well as art installations, in Greece and abroad, and have received good reviews, awards, and honors, including the 2009 Woman Artist of the Year for my contribution to the arts as a lighting designer in Greece. I have been teaching stage lighting design at the Theater Department of the School of Fine Arts of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki from 2005 to 2019, and I have to say that teaching has been the most fulfilling experience! Teaching and sharing my passion for lighting with young people and seeing them over the years become great lighting designers themselves is the most rewarding thing of all.
A significant moment was also my collaboration in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, as lighting designer and director, and member of the creative team. These two and a half years have been very creative and full of passion. The Emmy Award for Outstanding Lighting Direction, at the 57th Emmy Awards ceremony (Sept. 2005), was the first international recognition, and as the first Greek to have achieved this recognition, I have to say that I felt very very proud.
In 1999, I started my practice in the field of architectural lighting, founding the firm Eleftheria Deko & Associates Lighting Design. Together with my colleagues, we have created more than 200 studies for interior, exterior, and façade lighting for a large variety of public and private venues, such as office buildings, shopping malls, residences, restaurants, cafes, art spaces, monuments, hotels, media façades, and public spaces.
In December 2018, Eleftheria Deko & Associates lighting design won the first prize for exterior lighting at the Darc Awards, and we were the first Greek lighting design studio that achieved such an international award. Then more projects and awards followed, assuring us that we do serve lighting design in a good way.
The Acropolis lighting project came in 2020, and it has been more than a project for me.
It has been a mission! As a Greek and lighting designer, the lighting of the Acropolis was a lifetime project. It has been a unique experience for me and my team. It has been a most interesting journey.
Going back to how I discovered my passion for lighting design, I should say, inadvertently! By chance, or by this magic way that life leads you to your destiny.
I was pursuing a master’s degree in performance choreography at NYU, and the very first class I chose was lighting design, to learn how to light my own choreographic pieces. I immediately fell in love with lighting, and I have never stopped loving it since. Of course, New York in those days was full of art, theater, and dance performances, all with new ideas and pioneers in lighting. I was very lucky.
How would you describe the role and responsibilities when working on the new lighting of the Acropolis of Athens projects? Which other moments are included in this project? What was the design brief and your process when taking on this project?
This project was so much different from any other one. I felt I had to forget all I knew and start from scratch. Before starting our lighting study, I became an observer of the Acropolis. I spent many hours observing the monuments during the different phases of the day. That observation was the guide and the teacher. From different neighborhoods near and far, I observed the Acropolis as part of the city and its coexistence in today’s urban landscape. From these observations, I realized that the three elements of rock, fortification walls, and monuments, needed to be differentiated. Each bears different symbolism as well as different materiality.
The fortification, the rock, stands proudly in front of mankind. The walls represent human effort and craftsmanship, and the monuments are worship, art, and if I may say so, mystery.
These three elements cannot be illuminated in the same way. And this was our concept/philosophy for the new lighting of the Acropolis. Thus, through color temperature, direction, and intensity differentiation, we managed to achieve this. Moreover, we wanted to highlight the details of the sculpting parts and to create a depth of field to make the different volumes distinct from far away. For that reason, we used 12 different shades of white, to give different hues of light to the different monuments on the rock: the Parthenon, the Erechtheion, the Temple of Athena Nike, and the Propylaia.
My role and responsibility were to tame the desire to do more than needed. To achieve this, the new lighting would reflect the monument’s own light, highlight the light inherent in them, together with their history and the civilization they represent, and not project on them something that was not appropriate. It is such a delicate thin line to avoid the desire to “show off” and surrender to the needs of the monument and not to the ego of the designer. When we undertake large projects, I believe it is easy to fall into the trap of exaggeration. Sometimes the project itself might allow it, but in monuments such as the Acropolis, this is, in my opinion, forbidden. As in the ancient Greek saying, “all in good measure”!
In addition to the study of the new lighting of the Acropolis, we also undertook the complete implementation and execution of the project, including new wiring, electrical panels, and control system. For this, we collaborated with a sub-contractor, Mr. Dimitris Kapetanelis, and his team.
Another task was to obey all the restrictions and follow the guidelines of the archaeologists.
Due to the archeological significance of this historical monument, the placement and installation of the new lighting fixtures had to go through specific processes and get permission and installation approval from the Central Archaeological and Museum Council.
As per the brief, we didn’t receive a brief for the lighting design, but we received a technical study with guidelines and restrictions from the archaeological department of the Ministry of Culture, which we had to respect. They had only requested the improvement of the existing lighting and the replacement of the old luminaires, but we went beyond that and proposed a new philosophy. Thanks to the sponsor, the Onassis foundation, all this became a reality.
We undertook the project in January 2020 and completed the first phase on September 30th and the second phase (the temple of Hephaestus and the Philopappo’s monument) on December 3rd.
One of the main challenges that we faced in completing the project was the tight schedule. We had to deliver the lighting study within 45 days and complete and deliver the whole project within nine months from the assignment day. This restriction forced us to have a very strict schedule. And I have to say, we managed it very well. We divided our team into smaller groups, and each one had a different task. Working day and night in shifts to meet the deadline was not easy, especially for me since I was there day and night. Everybody involved, I have to say, worked with so much dedication and passion, and despite the very long hours, no one ever complained.
Our strict but effective schedule helped us a lot with the additional problem that appeared in the meantime, which was the COVID pandemic. A new situation we didn’t know how to handle, as we didn’t have the demo luminaires on time to do our on-site tests. We tested on-site similar spotlights and the real ones on Dialux and Relux.
This project was a journey with many difficulties, but also many rewards. The feeling after completing the task is not easy to describe in words. The Parthenon has been called by historians, artists, and architects throughout the centuries, the perfect building. Taking on the task of lighting it can only leave you in awe!
What does it mean to you to win the LIT 2021 Lighting Designer of the Year title?
The LIT award, and especially the title of designer of the year, gives me more than pride and satisfaction for the international recognition of my work. It is a great honor!!!
Being recognized by a jury panel of 38 of the most talented and successful professionals is the greatest honor for me and my team! I thank all the jury members for this recognition and the LIT organizers for the prestigious lighting awards that help our field grow and evolve into a brilliant community!!
What do you feel is the most challenging part of working in lighting design today? Are there any new trends you would like to share?
I believe now is the most interesting time to be a lighting designer. An artist lighting designer! Because now we have so many tools to work with, so many… ways of lighting to promote beauty, to create magic! Lighting is at the peak of its evolution, and I am expecting many more technological advances to come. I imagine total cableless lighting, even smarter control systems, sound and light collaboration, interactive lighting projections, and even healing through lighting.
What are you working on at the moment, and do you have any upcoming projects or collaborations that you’re able to tell us about?
In fact, we are very busy and happy to work on some very exciting projects.
We just finished the lighting study of the Temple of Afaia on the island of Aegina, another amazing monument from the glorious times of Greek antiquity, predating the Parthenon.
We have just completed the lighting of the new Archaeological Museum of Cyprus in Nikosia and the Archaeological Museum of the island of Kythnos in the Cyclades, Greece.
Other ongoing projects are the façade lighting of the Appotronics headquarters building in Shenzhen, China, the lighting of the renovation of the Athens Hilton, the Amathus Hotel in Limassol, Cyprus, and the lighting of two new hotels, one in Thessaloniki and one in Corfu, Greece. Also, the lighting of the façade of the Intercontinental Hotel in Doha, Qatar.
A new project that is starting with the new year is the Riviera Galleria by architect Kengo Kuma, part of the Hellinikon project.
What would be your best advice to emerging lighting designers?
Not only to work with light, but also to be in the light!
Do not give up on the details.
Keep on learning about light, not only the technical part, but from nature, literature, art, philosophy, even astronomy… broader minds, broader ideas, and better designs.
Last, what should we wish you for 2022?
Exactly what I wish for you and all people: to keep our inner flame lit, so that in the darkest moments it illuminates our path, gives us hope and strength, and warms up our hearts to be able to feel joy and share love.
Winner of the LIT Awards “Lighting Product Design of the Year” 2021, we meet with Charlie Prograce, a structural engineer with a design journey that started with Architecture before becoming a lighting designer. Charlie shared with us his creative process behind the “Opteris” Chandelier being a homage to the Tomopteris, a deep-sea creature.
Could you tell us a little about yourself?
My name is Charlie Prograce. I am a structural engineer with a love for architecture and design. I enjoy the interplay between the technical and the whimsical sides of design. Design for me starts with visualization of an idea followed by a deep exploration into the details of integration and fabrication of the components.
How did you discover your passion for Lighting Product Design?
My passion for Lighting Product Design started with Architectural design. Early on, I was inspired by the works of Morphosis founded by Thom Mayne and Michael Rotondi. Then I got turned on by Frank Gehry, Antoni Gaudi, and Zaha Hadid. I found the free-form rule-breaking asymmetry qualities to their designs totally inspiring. I’ve had many building designs never see the light of day because of insurmountable construction costs and rigid building code requirements. Recently the epiphany struck me. Design occurs at all scales. Lighting fixtures are at a perfect scale for my workshop, the cost of construction is a rounding error for a similarly designed building, and the code requirements are comparably negligible. Finally, after a 30-year career in the design of buildings, I’ve found my voice and I’m ready to say something.
Your winning project is the Opteris Chandelier, can you please explain to us, what was your creative journey? What is the signification behind the Opteris Chandelier?
Any design can be expressed with plan and section. The most basic of shapes would have the same section in three orthogonal planes. Additionally, there are basic forms of geometry like the triangle, circle, or square. These are ideal shapes that really don’t occur in nature and for me feel static and less inspiring. I use NURBS modeling in my designs because they more accurately depict forms found in nature. The Opteris is an exploration of these principles. It contains 104 unique NURBS based sections. The geometry is so powerful that it appears to be in motion.
In general, where is your inspiration from?
The Opteris chandelier pays homage to the Tomopteris. A deep-sea creature whose name is derived from the Greek meaning “a cut” + “wing” but taken to mean “fin”.
What does it mean to you, to win the LIT 2021 Lighting Product Design of the Year prize?
It means the world to me. It gives me a sense of legitimacy in my design. There were so many amazing submissions from all over the world and to have the panel of esteemed jurors choose this fixture is truly humbling. It’s one thing to say something and it means so much more to be heard.
What are you working on at the moment, and do you have any upcoming projects or collaborations that you’re able to tell us about?
There are new designs in the works but first and foremost we are actively pursuing forming a relationship with a manufacturer to bring this and other works to the world market. We are welcoming inquiries.
What would be your best advice to Emerging Lighting Product Designers?
Go into this knowing that design is only a fraction of what will be required of you. And say something in your designs that is thoughtful and meaningful to you.
Last, what makes light magical to you?
Light exists in a vacuum but is imperceivable by the human eye. It is not until it collides with matter that we can then see it. It’s nothing short of magical.
LUCI has received the 2021 Spotlight prize of the LIT Lighting Design Awards for its contribution to the lighting community.
The LIT Lighting Design Awards was created five years ago to recognize the efforts of talented international lighting product designers and lighting implementers. The Spotlight Prize was introduced in 2020 to reward and put the“spotlight” on an organization, association, project, or initiative that carries out remarkable work for its community and has a major contribution to the lighting industry. This year, the 2021 « Spotlight » prize has been awarded to LUCI Association for its contribution to the lighting community.
Astrid Hebert, Director of the LIT Design Awards and Co-founder 3C Awards, presented the award to Sylvain Godinot, Deputy Mayor of Lyon in charge of Ecological Transition and Heritage, Public Lighting and Lighting Masterplan, representing the LUCI Vice President City of Lyon. The presentation, on 9 December 2021, was at the occasion of a LUCI event, the Lyon Light Festival Forum 2021, taking place in Lyon during the city’s Fete des Lumières light festival.
“We are proud to accept this award on behalf of all members of the LUCI network and of the LUCI Executive Committee, of which Lyon is Vice President. LUCI now brings together 70 cities around the world and our members benefit throughout the year from meetings, knowledge exchange, and city-to-city cooperation projects via offline and online tools. We invite other cities to join us in amplifying this movement so that we can together respond to the challenges facing the cities of today and tomorrow, challenges to which light can provide some answers,” Sylvain Godinot, Deputy Mayor in charge of Ecological Transition and Heritage, Public Lighting and Lighting Masterplan, City of Lyon.
The awards jury panel composed of 38 talented and experienced professionals, architects, interior designers, academics and media representatives in the lighting industry selected the winners of the LIT Awards 2021. « We have received a collection of incredible works with over 500 applications from 33 countries, making this program a global reference in the lighting industry, » said Astrid Hébert.
“We are really delighted and honoured to receive the LIT 2021 Spotlight Prize. At LUCI, we strongly believe in city-to-city collaboration, exchange, learning and co-creation to improve urban lighting and quality of life in cities. As LUCI is about to turn 20 years young, this comes at a perfect time to recognize the Association’s contribution to the global urban lighting community!” said Mark Burton-Page, General Director of LUCI.
The company’s key mission is to promote design through awarding great designs, exhibiting, developing designers and artist communities, providing networking opportunities, and advancing the appreciation of excellence in design through education, outreach, and grants.
Developed by Hossein Farmani and Astrid Hébert, 3C Awards is part of a larger organization Three C Group GmbH based in Switzerland and specialized in Awards, Marketing, Media, and Events. 3C Awards represent today’s diversity and innovation in Lighting Design, Furniture Design, Interior Design, and Architecture. Each brand is a symbol of design excellence around the world, showcasing Professional and Emerging designers’ work to over 100 expert jury members. 3C awards is part of Three C Group GmbH, a Swiss-registered company based in Grabenstrasse 15a, 6340 Baar, Switzerland. More information is available on: www.3Cawards.com
Under the company Three C Group GmbH, 3C Awards will play a key role to develop our footprint in Europe and support the growth of our programs:
Three C Group GmbH is a sister company to Farmani Group, founded by Hossein Farmani. Farmani Group is a leading organization curating and promoting photography, design, and architecture across the globe since 1985.
The Farmani Group is responsible for many successful awards around the globe. Farmani Group organizes the International Design Awards (IDA), Architecture Masterprize, DNA, Paris Design Awards, London International Creative Awards, Prix de la Photographie in Paris, and the Annual Lucie Awards for Photography, which has emerged as one of the world’s most prestigious awards.
If you would like more information in regards to the program and our company, please contact: astrid.hebert@threec.group
With a career of over 50 years in Lighting Product Design, Tony Lawrence has been working since April 1969 at Concord Lighting part of the Sylvania Lighting group. He has been designing products that brought accent lighting to the high streets, art galleries, museums, hotels, and more… He has also set design briefs and evaluated projects for degree students of St Martins School of Art London’s students and at the University of Sussex.
Tony was trained as an Electrical/Mechanical Engineer and knew little of lighting. He joined Concord at the age of 21 as he wanted to live in London and was soon taken up with the subject of the combination of Product Design and Lighting Design Technology. He was fortunate enough to join at a time when the emphasis was very much on Design as championed by the artist founder, Bernard Stern, and working in the studio of Professor Robert Heritage of the Royal College of Art. It still gives him satisfaction to see those products he has designed being used to enhance beautiful objects or spaces.
Tony has won numerous prizes with Concord’s innovative range of LED luminaires starting with the Red Dot Award in 1996 for the Torus 100 Low volt spotlight range, followed by the FX Interior Design Awards in 1999 for the Torus 35W CDMT spotlight. In recent years, the Beacon Muse won 4 lighting industry awards mandating a ‘clean sweep’ and expert endorsement for high performance and beautiful products. The Stadium spotlight in 2010 won the prestigious Red Dot award. This was followed in 2013 when Concord Glace won the Best Interior Luminaire at the Lighting Design Awards and been a finalist at the Lux Awards and the FX Awards, whilst 2014 saw industry recognition of Concord’s Officelyte with new intelligent Sylsmart technology.
Tony has been involved in the design of all Lighting products from Concord by Sylvania, being the center of innovation and development; his contribution to the lighting industry is prodigious!
Meet Tony Lawrence
Craig A. Bernecker’s lighting career now spans nearly four decades and during that time he has had the opportunity to play a significant role in the development of two highly regarded lighting education programs, one at Penn State University and one at Parsons School of Design, The New School. Craig’s contribution to Lighting Education is tremendous, as an Educational Facilitator for the LIGHTFAIR International, Professor of Lighting Design and Director at Parsons School of Design, The New School, New York and Founder of The Lighting Education Institute as well as his involvement in professional societies such as the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IES), the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD) and the International Commission on Illumination (CIE).
Craig shared with us his involvement in lighting design to understand his career:
Craig A. Bernecker: After leaving college with an undergraduate degree in psychology, I chose to pursue a very different career by entering the Master’s Program in Architectural Engineering at Penn State University. Unknown to me was the fact that the lighting faculty member there, John Flynn, was conducting research on the psychology of light. I got into lighting because my background in psychology led me to serve as his graduate assistant. And my master’s thesis work in lighting, The Potential for Design Applications of Luminance Data, turned out to be awarded transaction status when presented at the 1979 IES Conference and published in the Journal of the Illuminating Engineering Society. It also introduced the first computer-generated photorealistic rendering of the lighting effects in a space.
The influence of John Flynn on my career was not over yet, however, as after graduation I took a position with a large architectural engineering firm in Philadelphia, and was asked by Flynn to co-teach graduate architecture students at the University of Pennsylvania. Thus my teaching career began.
After designing lighting systems for all of the A&E firm’s projects for two years, I was hired by a west coast manufacturer, primarily based on the strength of my thesis, to run their applications department and conduct research. Shortly after arriving there, I learned of the illness and ultimately the passing of John Flynn, which began a road to return to Penn State to continue the lighting program there. One of the carryovers from the west coast manufacturer to Penn State was research I conducted on indirect lighting systems and brightness perception. This led to a second major publication, The Effect of Source Luminance on the Perception of Environmental Brightness, and to an effort by a number of manufacturers to convert totally indirect lighting systems to direct-indirect lighting systems.
Penn State Lighting Program
Craig A. Bernecker: While at Penn State, I was able to expand the lighting program in the Department of Architectural Engineering from 2-1/2 courses to eight courses, and created stability by bringing a second lighting faculty position to the program, which led to the hiring of Rick Mistrick, who remains a mainstay of the program. I was also able to garner funding from the Besal Foundation to provide a significant number of lighting scholarships for our students. During my twenty years at Penn State, we placed well over 200 professionals into the lighting industry, with notable graduates like Chip Israel (Lighting Design Alliance), Rick Mistrick (Penn State), Kevin Houser (Oregon State), Clarence Waters (Nebraska), Bob Davis (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory), Dorene Maniccia (Design Lights Consortium), Jim Baney and Emily Klingensmith (Schuler Shook), Andrea Hartranft (Hartranft Lighting Design), Karen Murphy (HDR), Mary Ann Hay (Syska Hennessy), Ron Kurtz (Dark Light), Dave Pfund and Joe Zaharewicz (The Lighting Quotient), Dave Ranieri (Acuity Brands), and countless others I have missed, who hold significant positions in the lighting industry.
I also got involved in distance learning in its formative stages during my tenure at Penn State, in particular serving on the university steering committee for Penn State’s World Campus and serving as a Faculty Fellow in Distance Education. As a part of my work in this arena, I developed a course that I taught jointly between Penn State and Tennessee State University students using early distance learning technologies. Focusing on creating diversity using these technologies, this led to several publications, An inter-institutional approach to distance learning and diversity, and Distance learning in architectural engineering: An inter-institutional case study.
My research at Penn State included collaboration with Dr. George Brainard, where we published the first study (Biological Effects of Architectural Lighting and Their Associated Energy Utilization) demonstrating that the physiological effects of lighting could be influenced by architectural lighting systems rather than solely through the use of therapeutic devices.
During my time at Penn State, I also authored five chapters in the IES intermediate education course (ED150), as well as many other articles published in a variety of journals.
The Lighting Education Institute
Craig A. Bernecker: Ultimately my work in distance learning and restrictions on the ability to reach a wide range of people led me to leave Penn State and pursue distance learning on my own by forming The Lighting Education Institute (LEI). I continue to deliver professional lighting education through LEI, including offering an annual Lighting Certification (NCQLP) review course with the Illuminating Engineering Society and serving as Educational Facilitator, responsible for planning the conference program at LIGHTFAIR each year. I also annually teach the two-day intermediate lighting course annually at LIGHTFAIR.
Parsons School of Design Lighting Program
Craig A. Bernecker: A few years after starting the Lighting Education Institute, I was asked to travel to Parsons to teach one of their lighting courses. Over a year or so, this quickly morphed to four courses and a full-time position in the lighting program beginning in 2006.
At Parsons, I contributed to revising the curriculum in the two-year MFA Lighting Design program, and, in particular, helped establish a stronger fundamentals base for the lighting design students. We also developed an interdisciplinary emphasis, establishing both a dual degree program to award a Masters of Architecture and MFA Lighting Design simultaneously, and a double major granting an MFA in Lighting and Interior Design, led by my colleague Derek Porter.
An additional curricular initiative relatively early in my tenure was to create an elective course offering, Lighting Technologies in the Developing World, exploring the large part of the world that does not have access to electric lighting either due to poverty or lack of access to electric power. We generated significant interest among our students in exploring the developing world, including design issues, technologies, and implementation. As a result, I was able to deliver twenty-four solar-powered lighting systems, identified through a series of these course offerings, to a remote village in Senegal, and presented both our students’ work and my experience in several venues – IALD Enlighten Americas, PLDC, and IES.
In 2014, I was awarded an educational grant by the Illuminating Engineering Society to seed the development of a one-week intensive lighting design studio, intended to bring practicing professionals back into the design studio to refresh, reinvigorate, and learn new design techniques. The studio has been quite successful, drawing attendees from around the world. One international attendee wrote on Facebook, “to one of the most amazing experiences I’ve had along my journey with light,” and “If it existed… the 10 courses to take before you die, surely this one would be at the top of my list.”
We recently added a Daylighting Intensive Design Studio to pair with the regular intensive, taking advantage of the heliodon and diffuse sky simulator of our Light and Energy Lab. The studios are run back-to-back in consecutive weeks so participants can schedule either one or both together.
In the fourteen plus years since I’ve been at Parsons, we’ve been able to create a unique research program within a design school. Focused on evidence-based design, to get our design students to conduct experimental research as their final thesis projects. Over the last four years, we have presented and published more than a dozen of their projects as technical papers at the IES Annual Conferences. Students learn how to do a good research so they can more critically evaluate cutting-edge information potentially informing their future design decisions.
A significant accomplishment of the research program involves two studies to finally expand the psychology of light work of John Flynn by exploring the influence of color temperature on subjective responses to lighted environments. These two studies, The Influence of Chromaticity on Subjective Impressions in Lighted Environments, and, The Influence of Color Temperature along with Illuminance on Subjective Impressions in Lighting, were presented and published in 2017 and 2019.
Another part of the research program is being conducted for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Next Generation Lighting Systems program. As a result, there are currently thirteen different connected lighting systems installed on the New School/Parsons campus that serves as a “living laboratory,” where students are engaged in evaluating these systems to better inform their effectiveness. The ongoing work of the assessment of these systems following the stages of the overall building design and construction process from specification to post-occupancy evaluation has been presented in a variety of venues, from LIGHTFAIR to LEDucation to both the IES and IALD conferences.
Our most recent research is focused on the integration of germicidal ultraviolet radiation (GUV) into architectural lighting systems. We are evaluating the potential for GUV to be safely integrated into architectural lighting systems to kill bacteria and deactivate viruses, including SARS-CoV2. We will test both the efficacy of GUV to treat upper room air to keep our environments safe over the long term and develop a protocol for the assessment of such systems as more manufacturers produce products that will require evaluation to ensure they are safe.
Most recently, I have developed a lighting certificate program in cooperation with The New School’s online distance learning initiative. Consisting of three five-week courses and entirely virtual, this certificate program will address a growing need for lighting education outside of full degree programs.
Service to the Lighting Profession
Craig A. Bernecker: A large part of my service to the lighting profession has been through the Illuminating Engineering Society. I have had the opportunity to serve in three major positions, Vice President of Technical and Research Activities, Vice President of Educational Activities, and President, including serving one year as Senior Vice President before serving as President, as well as one year as Immediate Past President, the year following. Within that arc of service, I was able to implement several changes. One was to create a new publication, a Technical Memorandum, to address cutting-edge issues in a timely fashion, another to establish a task force to develop a new classification system for exterior luminaires, and yet another to revamp the annual conference that had been lagging in attendance and quality. I also reorganized several committees and the overall committee structure in each position.
The IES recognized my service with the Distinguished Service Award in 2017, and my overall contributions to the profession by naming me a fellow in 1991.
I have served two terms on the IALD Board of Directors, but also have provided service in a different way, specifically to develop and deliver a series of workshops on solid-state lighting (LED’s), as it was becoming a more accepted technology and helping designers to understand it better.
I have been involved in the International Commission on Illumination (CIE) in the past, and again most recently, having been appointed as the United States representative to Division 3: Interior Environment.
Consulting and Other Services
Craig A. Bernecker: I have regularly attempted to stay current with design practice by engaging in design opportunities throughout my career as a lighting educator. My projects have included pro bono design work for a church in my community, to design for a historical township building. I was also called in to re-design a newly installed lighting system in a residence that purportedly contained the largest collection of modern art in the U.S.
A part of my consulting work over the years has been to serve as an expert witness in several cases. Over time these have included automobile accidents, personal injuries due to poor lighting, and even a murder case. My most recent expert witness work was a major multi-billion dollar trademark infringement case where the judge cited my testimony as one of the major factors influencing his decision.
Crossing back over to more of a service role, I was appointed by the U.S. Department of Energy as co-chair of the technical committee that evaluated and ultimately awarded the $10,000,000 prize for the Bright Tomorrow Competition, also known as the L Prize, of the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act.
I find it important to be involved in these kinds of activities in order to bring an understanding of design practice, as well as cutting-edge information back into the classroom for my students’ benefit. And if I’ve accomplished anything deserving of this award, it is the students who as practicing professionals have contributed to the lighting profession in a myriad of ways, raising the importance of lighting as a critical design element in our built environments.
Los Angeles, CA – The prestigious LIT Lighting Design Awards is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2021 Spotlight prize is “LUCI Association” (Lighting Urban Community International).
The Spotlight Prize has been introduced in 2020 to reward and put the “spotlight” on an organization, association, project, or initiative that carries out remarkable work for its community and has a major contribution to the Lighting Industry.
Created in 2002 at the initiative of the City of Lyon (France), today, LUCI is a non-profit organisation bringing together over 70 member towns and cities worldwide that use light as a tool for social, cultural and economic development. It also includes over 50 associated members from the lighting industry, design agencies and research institutes.
“We are really delighted and honoured to receive the LIT 2021 Spotlight Prize. At LUCI, we strongly believe in city-to-city collaboration, exchange, learning and co-creation to improve urban lighting and quality of life in cities. As LUCI is about to turn 20 years young, this comes at a perfect time to recognize the Association’s contribution to the global urban lighting community!” said Mark Burton-Page, General Director of LUCI.
Through the organisation of international events and conferences, and by piloting lighting projects and research initiatives, LUCI helps cities harness the potential of light to create sustainable and people-focused urban spaces.
AGM Tartu © Annika Hass TAVA – LUCI AGM Tartu © Annika Hass TAVA
What are the core missions of LUCI and how it supports cities :
© L_Oritsland – © City of Rotterdam photo EricFecken
LUCI Association activities, publications and events:
For more information on the LUCI Association please visit the LUCI website and social media accounts: Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.Lighting Designer from Teheran, Aidin Ardjomandi, is working in his own design studio as a product and lighting designer. Aidin is also the lecturer and manager of marketing at Istituto Di Moda Burgo in Qatar and the international relations manager of the Azerbaijan Design Awards. Today he shared his experience of being a part of our amazing jury and described his special connection with lighting design.
First of all, what was the best thing for you of being a part of the 2020 LIT jury?
Nothing is as exciting as being surprised. When you expect good works and suddenly you face unique and unbelievable ones. I have had the experience of being on the jury panel of more than 25 awards before and this event has always been one of the most special. Where you are amazed to see every single submission and expect a better one every moment.
What do you think of the overall quality & diversity of the submitted projects?
Undoubtedly, the level of submitted works was very high and this level is getting better year by year. What I saw during this period made one of my best memories of such events. However, the presence of this significant number of high-quality works increases the responsibility and makes the decision-making process difficult. But being among the best in order to decide for the best is a unique feeling.
Which designs have stood out for you? Can you share a couple and let us know why?
I think all jury members agreed that Niamh Barry’s work, the Artist’s Hand was truly special and unique. It was difficult to find a problem on and it conveys a wonderful feeling to the audience. This good feeling was what I saw in two wonderful products designed by Ren Peng, the Z-Lamp and the Time Machine table lamp. In my opinion, they were wonderful, and the interaction included in the work created more than just a lighting product. It was an added value that made these works unique.
What is the current situation for young designers and lighting in your home country, Iran?
As you may know, due to the existence of many historical buildings in Iran, lighting has always been a significant field for designers and in recent years, with the growth of interior design, lighting has developed as an inseparable part of this very popular field. Today, Iranian designers are strengthening their position by participating in national and international projects, especially in the Middle East design market. And it promises good days for this industry in the near future.
When we are talking about Design it is impossible to separate function and the soul meaning of beauty. Design is a logical art which has considers all aspects of objects so when you call a lamp “a beautiful lamp” it simply means it was a Lamp fundamentally before it was beautiful so beauty, functionality, and even ergonomics together fabricate the Word Aesthetics in the Lighting Design.
It is possible to have functioned without beauty, but the word aesthetics without functions is meaningless.
What are the ongoing trends that you have noticed in the world of lighting design?
Today, lighting design is not considered a luxury field and its impact is much greater than before. Light as a phenomenon that causes vision affects beauty and beauty is not possible without lighting. It seems that with the advancement of technology, the place intended for lighting will soon be upgraded from an art to an inseparable science from all aspects of design and become a part of it.
Is there any advice you would like to give to future Lighting Product & Lighting Designers joining the LIT Awards?
Creativity and light can both lighten the darkness. The combination of these two concepts creates magic, and if this connection comes from inside of the designer, anything would be possible.
Lighting is the principal in enhancing the user experience of the hospitality industry. As illumination is a critical component, careful design is invested in ensuring that space takes full advantage of both natural and artificial lighting. A powerful medium needs a creative mind with expert understanding and team collaboration. You’ll have contractors to lighting designers, all with one goal of creating an immersive experience, unforgettable and awe-inspiring.
The following lighting companies’ amalgamation of lighting elements has successfully showcased the architectural elements they require and, at the same time, contributed to a cohesive whole. These six lighting companies’ masterful use of lighting have earned their works as the winners in the Hotel and Restaurant Lighting for the year 2020 by Lighting Design Awards.
The Grand Plaza Mövenpick boasts magnificent lighting spectacles that offer a euphoric experience from its spectators.
The Swoop – the eye-catching chandelier made of 3,500 hand-blown crystals that act as a spiraling centerpiece – sets a majestic scene upon entering the property’s atrium. Katerina Handlova created the artistic masterpiece, which was inspired by the flight of a bird, a simple concept whose aerodynamic intricacies are perfectly captured.
The lighting needs to complement and enhance how the spaces looked and felt during the day, evening, and night, as well as reinforce the architecture and interior design of a five-star property.
The lighting scheme meets every requirement of the brief, from a dynamic façade lighting scheme that draws attention to the architecture in a competitive location to the automated lighting scenes that run through the interior public spaces, each taking into account the space they illuminate. The restaurants’ feature lighting scenes that complement meal times throughout the day, lobby spaces reveal uplit screens that graze texture and materiality, lift lobbies softly glow through backlit lightboxes with inlaid metalwork, and the rooftop bar comes alive in the evening with edge-lit artworks, sparkling glass displays, and internally glowing onyx counters.
Company: neolight global
Lead Designers A. Mitchell, M. Eizadfar, G. Thornton, L. Columna
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Studies have shown the correlation between light and how we choose and process the meals we eat. Designers of the Odesa Food Market take the dining experience to a whole new level by ensuring optimum comfort, and the right ambiance is achieved any time of the day.
The lighting designers have created different atmospheres with light and enhanced the interior architecture.
Restaurants often have different missions: some are dominated by the function of breakfast or lunch, others are created for the evening pastime. The task was to create the light that would provide comfort for breakfast when you need to cheer up, and for a business lunch in the middle of the day, and for an atmospheric dinner, when you want to move to intimate places and have a drink in a darkened bar closer tonight.
In the morning, the light is cool, flooding, and soft. By lunchtime, it warms up and gradually shows accent spots on the tables. The light becomes more dramatic in the evening, without a flooding effect, with the most contrasting accents and nuanced work with shadows.
We revived the central element of the tree with light and scaled it to the entire space of the restaurant. With the help of several light sources, one tree was revealed with picturesque shadows over most of the circular vault. We selected the optics and the location of the light sources for the widest possible contrast shading.
Company: Expolight
Lead Designers: Mykola Kabluka
Other Credits: Restaurateur Alex Cooper, Architect Slava Balbek
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Truman’s Social Club in London is housed in a large industrial building divided into three bays: the Brewery, the Events Space, and the Social Club. It was established in response to social distancing to create a space that accommodates a variety of seating areas that not only adhere to guidelines but also provide seclusion from other parties. With this in mind, the lighting design approach added much-needed warmth to deliver a sense of tranquility and community to an intentionally sparsely occupied floor layout, assisting in wayfinding and zoning.
The purposeful reuse of old fixtures saves money while also meeting environmental views on circular economy and ethical growth. Keeping the customer journey in mind, we wanted to create a festival-like atmosphere that echoed throughout the spaces. A striking canopy of suspended pendants marks the entrance and path out into the beer garden. In contrast, indirect lighting secludes large enclosed booths flanking the entrances and smaller ones beyond the bar area. The high-level lighting can be dimmed to focus on the interior design elements, such as the “roundabout” with green foliage and central bar, as well as the branding.
Company: There’s Light Limited
Lead Designers: Fabio A P Cristini, Darran Prior
Other Designer’s names: Hunter’s Daughter (interiors)
Other Credits: Colin Ross (photography)
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The lighting design incorporates technology that allows for a seamless combination of controllable white light and unrivaled rich color combinations. It was decided to create a light show in this barrel vault ceiling in conjunction with the Marina Bay Sands light show, creating spectacular lighting effects and incorporating the dinners into the overall mesmerizing experience.
VUE@OUE Bayfront Bar & Restaurant used to be housed on the 19th Floor rooftop of the OUE Bayfront building and was closed a few years ago. Recently opened, it had recently gone a total makeover to become one of Singapore’s must-go, must-visit dining and bar establishments. The location is an unrivaled and magical draw to the public, with a stunning 270-degree view of the Singapore Skyline, the Marina Bay area, and its iconic Marina Bay Sands building. The interior designers maximized the space and volume to get the most impact and the best views and experience possible, combining a cozy, intimate dining experience with dramatic views of the skyline. In the evenings, Marina Bays Sands also has an hourly light show.
Prize(s) Winners in Interior Architectural Illumination
Company: Klaasen Lighting Design
Lead Designers: Martin Klaasen
Other Designer’s names: Amanda Yap
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Metropol, a stunning restaurant and project from Juskani Alonso Estudio, takes inspiration from Fritz Lang’s 1927 film Metropolis. The lighting spectacle was designed by ILWT and was created for Millesime GNP.
Utilizing the layers of lights and shadows, the space, made of 3D prints, represents the materiality and depth of the city. Various elements can be seen throughout the film, including the movie’s buildings on the walls. The flower centerpieces in Garden of Eden pay homage to the film’s expressionism.
Maria, the robot in the film, reinterpreted by ILWT as the “light giver” to the people to make the rebellion against the system, was conceptualized as the light giver for the restaurant as well; these stainless-steel fixtures on the tables were designed specifically for this restaurant, and together with the dimmable LED strips.
Prize(s) Winners in Ambient Lighting
Company: ILWT
Lead Designers: Miguel Vega / Juskani Alonso
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As the name implies, it serves dishes inspired by land, sea, and air animals in Fusion Italian Mediterranean cuisine. It is a famous restaurant in Indonesia with its unlikely and imaginative architecture. This restaurant’s lighting design is critical since guests will be transported to various environments such as the sea, land, forests, caves, and mountains.
The element of the boat at sea becomes the main element in the reception area with sea nuances. The hallway leading from the reception area to the main hall is decorated in a navy blue and forest green color scheme. The concept of sky clouds is created using fluorescent light waves. The cave atmosphere is felt in the VIP room from the cracks in the ceiling with the selection of blue sky, the sun shining on the table by placing the spotlight there.
Warm colors are chosen with spots on each dining table in the main room with nuances of forest land, without forgetting other supporting elements that are also given a softer light. Lighting is used to highlight the shape of decorative hanging elements in outdoor areas. So that there are no other elements on the ceiling, a mini spotlight to the table is integrated into the element.
Prize(s) Winners in Ambient Lighting
Company: MAW desain
Lead Designers: Mario Widagdo
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Light is a technically difficult yet awe-inspiring medium that necessitates mastery of numerous and ever-changing disciplines. A lighting design practice extends far beyond concerns about visibility and horizontal footcandles to include the arts, sciences, and business of illumination design and implementation.
A project owner or even a designer may be unmindful of the benefits that an independent lighting consultant can bring to today’s design and construction processes.