2018 awards celebrate the best of the Los Angeles lighting design community
Los Angeles (July 1, 2018) – Nearly 500 lighting professionals and guests flocked to the historic Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles for the glitzy 2018 Lumen West Awards gala on June 23rd. The program, hosted by the Illuminating Engineering Society Los Angeles Section (IESLA), celebrated excellence in lighting design today and encouraged the next generation of lighting designers with a record-breaking $36,000 in scholarships awarded. In addition, individuals and firms were recognized for their service to IESLA and the local lighting community.
IESLA Section President and Lumen West Awards Chair Sylvie Tabori, of Current Light, appreciated the time and expertise contributed by the 2018 Lumen West Awards judges: Anjan Sarkar of CD+M Lighting Design Group; Cy Eaton of Lumenetix, Inc.; Dave Young of ETC; Heith Rogers of Google; Kathryn Toth of Theia Lighting Design; Ken Downing of Luceplan; and Terry Charron of Current Light. All the lighting designers recognized also entered into international consideration as part of the IES Illumination Awards program, according to IESLA Illumination Awards Chair David Komonosky of Performance Lighting Systems. Recipients of the 2018 IES Orange County Section Illumination Awards, and their fine lighting design work, were included in the celebrations.
Attendees socialized, enjoyed splashy photo ops, dined, and danced the night away to The Luminations, an excellent cover band. IESLA appreciates the hospitality of the evening’s many sponsors, calling out Diamond Sponsors Performance Lighting Systems, Western Lighting & Energy Control, and Optic Arts, in particular. “Lumen West is the LA lighting industry’s biggest night of the year,” said Tabori. “I’m thrilled that proceeds from this fun-filled event go toward fostering a love of lighting, and the lighting community, in young students and emerging professionals.”
2018 Lumen West Award of Excellence for Interior Lighting Design
Tina Aghassian, Clifton Manahan, Derek Bauer, and Adam Levine of HLB Lighting Design for George Bush Intercontinental Airport United Terminal C North Concourse
The defining lighting concept for the terminal is the “journey of discovery,” a series of organically winding lines in the ceiling that serve to guide the flow of patron traffic. Light fixtures were selected for their sparkling LED optics, and were custom made to integrate within the atypical ceiling system. Subtle use of blue accents within the skylights reinforces United’s brand and the terminal’s clean, modern appeal.
PHOTOS: Henrik Khodaverdi
2018 Lumen West Award of Excellence for Interior Lighting Design
Michael Lindsey, Teal Brogden, and Meghan Howell of HLB Lighting Design for Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center
This re-energizing facelift for a 46-year-old facility focused on large-scale flexibility, energy efficiency, and one-of-a-kind design only found in Texas. The shining beacon of the project is the “Starry Night” ballroom, designed around the concept of the land, air, and sky of Texas. Custom LED lights integrate into the undulating ceiling plane to artfully mimic a starry Texas night sky.
PHOTOS: Terry Wier
2018 Lumen West Award of Excellence for Interior Lighting Design
Lisa Passamonte Green, Kate Furst, and Leigh Brown of Visual Terrain, with Joost Wijgers of Light-H-Art for Jameson Distillery Bow St. – Tasting and Tour
Lighting evokes the Jameson Distillery story with warm track lighting, vibrant projections, color changing accents, and miniature spotlights. A table in the tasting room glows with illuminated words describing the flavors of the whiskey. The famous bottle stands, uplit, at the center of the table with the brand’s crest glowing overhead.
PHOTOS: BRC Imagination Arts
2018 Lumen West Energy and Environmental Design Award of Excellence
Archit Jain, Chao-Wei Su, and Scott Hatton of Oculus Light Studio for Retail Design Collaborative – Studio 111 Urban Office
Reflecting the client’s philosophy of rebuilding communities through sustainable design, the project transforms a 30,000 square foot warehouse. High-bay lighting combines with 20 new skylights and three large framed street openings, balancing visual comfort with high vertical footcandles. Exceptional collaboration among architects, lighting designers, and engineers achieved LEED Platinum and WELL Gold certification.
PHOTOS: Benny Chan, Fotoworks
2018 Lumen West Award of Excellence for Outdoor Lighting Design
Joshua VanBlankenship, Brian Parisi, and Derek Warrick of StandardVision, and Chip Israel, Andrew Powell, and Arex Soontharuch of Lighting Design Alliance for Wilshire Grand Center
Wilshire Grand’s light and media platform joins a uniquely 21st-century conversation among buildings, citizens, and culture. A decade-long environmental impact review and new signage district enabled a grand-scale design capable of emoting in real-time. The Courtyard features a transparent display oriented toward the pedestrian experience, while Crown and Spine lighting seamlessly reinforce the building’s skyline profile, visible across the region.
PHOTOS: Adrian Velicescu and Hunter Kerhart
Lumen West Control Innovation Award of Merit:
- Matthias Nikolakopulos of Nikolakopulos, Inc., for Arclight Cinemas
Lumen West Awards of Merit for Interior Lighting Design
- Lisa Passamonte Green, Steven Young, and Leigh Brown of Visual Terrain for Akin Gump Los Angeles
- Archit Jain, Sarah Wang, and Scott Hatton of Oculus Light Studio for AT&T San Francisco Flagship
- Erin Erdman and Landon Roberts of eSquared Lighting Design for Burbank Connexion
- Scott Johnson of Brilliant Lighting Studio, and Nicole Rossetti and Luis Cruz of Wolcott Architecture for Fandango
- Lisa Passamonte Green and Kate Furst of Visual Terrain for Hahn Visitor Center
- Lisa Passamonte Green, Kate Furst, and Leigh Brown of Visual Terrain for Jameson Distillery Bow St. – Bar and Retail
- Lisa Passamonte Green and Steven Young of Visual Terrain, and John Jenkinson of Bandit Lites for NFL Game for Life
- Tina Aghassian, Michael Lindsey, and Maura Reinhart of HLB Lighting Design for Nickelodeon West Coast Headquarters
- Erin Erdman and Landon Roberts of eSquared Lighting Design for Paul Hastings Law Firm Los Angeles
- Erin Erdman and Landon Roberts of eSquared Lighting Design, and Tom Myers of Rios Clemente Hale Studios for Rios Clementi Hale Studios Office
- Archit Jain, Chao-Wei Su, and Scott Hatton of Oculus Light Studio, for Retail Design Collaborative – Studio 111 Urban Office
- Michael Lindsey, Teal Brogden, Meghan Howell, Maura Reinhart, and Hayden McKay of HLB Lighting Design, and Jonathan Gettler of Design Engineering for University of Iowa Voxman Music Building
Lumen West Awards of Merit for Outdoor Lighting Design
- Tina Aghassian, Azusa Yabe, and Jordan Hornback of HLB Lighting Design for Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Plaza Level Healing Garden
- Sean O’Connor, David Hahn, and Becky Yam of Sean O’Connor Lighting for Congregation Rodeph Shalom
- Scott Hatton, Spurthy Yogananda, and Archit Jain of Oculus Light Studio for Parasol Park
- Lisa Passamonte Green, Michael Mahlum, Steven Young, Kate Furst, Ken Daniel, Leigh Brown, Jonathan Lebovic, Wendy Thomas, Mallory Paddock, and Jeff De Lamotte of Visual Terrain for Universal’s Volcano Bay
Honored for Service to IESLA
2018 IES Los Angeles Section Meritorious Service Award: Mark Terzano of Lutron Electronics Co. for more than 20 years of service as IESLA Treasurer. “We recognize – at long last – Mark’s 20+ years of diligent service managing our books and serving our membership. We owe him a huge debt of gratitude,” Tabori said.
2018 IES Los Angeles Section Outstanding Service Awards:
- Adam Levine of HLB Lighting Design Inc.
- Kandyce Allamby of Louis Poulsen
- Kate Furst of Visual Terrain
- Rachael Stoner of exp Global
- Sylvie Tabori of Current Light
- Terry Charron of Current Light
2018 Firm of the Year: Current Light
2018 Manufacturers’ Representative of the Year: Anne Frederiksen of Prudential Lighting Products
2018 Manufacturer of the Year: Prudential Lighting Company
2018 IESLA Lighting Scholarship Recipients
IESLA Russell Cole Memorial Design Competition
- Graduate Winners:
- $8000 to Kenya Collins of the University of Southern California for “Sprout”
- $5000 to Benjamin Lin of the University of Southern California for “Swirl”
- $4000 to Fan Wu of the University of Southern California for “To Infinity and Beyond”
- Undergraduate Winner:
- $3000 to Daryll Agbayani of the University of Southern California for “Ordered Chaos”
Saul M. Goldin Memorial Internships with the California Lighting Technology Center
- Cynthia Liang, undergraduate at University of Southern California School of Architecture
- Shuyi Wu, graduate student at the University of Southern California School of Architecture.
About IESLA
The Los Angeles Section of the Illuminating Engineering Society fosters lighting education and professionalism, attracting interest and expertise across Southern California. Monthly events through much of the year feature lighting lectures and tours, seminars and demonstrations. The Wally Whitney Memorial Product Fair and the Lumen West Awards gala are highly anticipated annual events. The IESLA Golf Tournament and other fundraisers support scholarships for students in local colleges and universities, nurturing the future of the global lighting industry. For more information on IESLA and the Lumen West Award recipients, visit iesla.org.
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