More than 500,000 visitors attend GLOW 2021
(Netherlands) - More than 580,000 people attended the 2021 GLOW Eindhoven event across seven days, given the theme ‘Moved by Light’.
The event was spread across four different locations in and around the city of Eindhoven, and despite having to end a day early due to new Covid measures announced by the Dutch government, organisers are overwhelmed with the number of visitors.
Ronald Ramakers, Director of GLOW, said: “We are incredibly proud that this edition of GLOW - spread across the entire city - was able to take place thanks to the close collaboration with artists from home and abroad. We have worked together with the municipality of Eindhoven and other key partners to make this event a great success.”
With around 35 light artists from the Netherlands and abroad, the event featured some of the most inspiring and innovative exhibits ever seen at GLOW. The enlarged exhibition area, spread over four sites and two satellite locations - gave both visitors and the light installations more space, while making the event more Covid-19 compliant.
One of the highlights of the event was the Dutch Footprint installation, created on the Ketelhuisplein. On 8 November, children made homemade flower lanterns out of recycled materials and walked a route of five hectares - the size of the ‘footprint’ of an average Dutch citizen. Together with television programme Het Klokhuis (The Apple Core), the installation aimed to show the impact of people on the planet.
Another highlight was Domus Luma at the Paterskerk; with an impressive projection, light and laser show on the outside and the Wish Factory inside. Strijp-S and -T attracted a large volume of visitors also, with Gijs van Bon’s abstract dragon PING adapted in honour of the construction of the Nanjing Pavilion. Gijs van Bon also worked with various ASML engineers on Drop of the Light, another installation that proved very popular with the public.
The theme ‘Moved by Light’ was a topic that captured the essence of the challenges of the past two years - a period that required more resilience from everyone. But Ramakers believes this edition of GLOW was a big success. He added: “Although the expansion to the new locations was a challenge at times, we can definitely say GLOW 2021 was a very successful edition. Local residents and visitors (from far and wide) were surprised, thrilled, challenged and inspired. This year’s light art was often referred to as ‘breathtaking’.”
GLOW Eindhoven will return next year, taking place from 12-19 November 2022.
Designers Mind: An Interview with Ström
As part of its ongoing mission to spread the word about mental health and wellbeing practices, Designers Mind is conducting a series of interviews with design studios to find out more about what they're doing to improve the wellbeing of their teams. In the first interview, Designers Mind speak to Ström, a lighting design consultancy co-founded by Anna Sandgren and Emilio Hernandez.
Ström's mission is to create timeless, lasting lighting schemes with restrained design intervention and minimal burden on the planet through responsible sourcing. With more than 15 years of designing and specifying lighting for spaces, human impact has always been at the forefront of what they do.
Designers Mind: What does wellbeing mean to you in relation to your work? Why is it important?
Ström: It absolutely shouldn’t be a 'Bolt on' or seen as a company perk, it needs to be woven into your daily approach to things. Therefore building a strong company culture where the individual feels trusted and comfortable communicating and setting their own boundaries around their own mental health and wellbeing is important. This is not an easy task but we think it’s essential.
What are some of the wellbeing practices that you incorporate into your days?
We avoid talking about work after and before certain times of day and as we work and live together it’s really important that we can create that boundary without feeling stressed. We also try to enjoy the little victories, flexibility and experiences that working for yourself enables as well as things like taking the time to cook a healthy lunch and guilt-free outdoor exercise when there is a break in the weather.
Are there any changes you’d like to make to the way you work now in your own company compared with previous roles and pre-Covid? And if so, why are you making them?
A lot of the value we add as designers comes from creative thinking which does not always manifest itself as a stack of drawings or documents. So allowing time and freeing up space for creative thinking has been a big priority for us.
Our goal is to grow organically over time and to take on projects and collaborate with people that align with our own company values. As we're a small business we cannot afford ‘burnout' - for a lot of design companies ‘burnout’ is seen as par for the course as it's been part of the industry culture for such a long time. This is troubling and why we think the work of Designers Mind is so important.
Would you consider implementing policies such as a ‘no meeting day’ or working core hours with flexibility?
Any tool that encourages people to take time away from things that might cause burnout is worth considering. However as wellbeing is not ‘one size fits all’ it should always be seen through the lens of the individual. In the past we have tried implementing 'no deadlines' or 'no meetings' on certain days, however we saw there was extra pressure or anxiety felt by some team members as a result.
This doesn't mean it couldn't work but in our experience it would be better to define boundaries for individuals and tailor the policy accordingly.
What advice do you have for other studios looking to introduce more wellbeing practices into their work too?
Again we feel wellbeing could best be seen as an employee right and part of company culture (as much as a weekend or a lunch break). If it's seen as a company perk it becomes complex as there isn't a one size fits all activity to suit people's mental health needs.
The danger of it being a perk is that the employer feels that they have provided a service (i.e. gym, yoga, meditation) and the onus is now on the employee to perform as normal. If the perk doesn't suit the employee then they will feel more anxious and the employer will feel frustrated that their team is not satisfied.
Perhaps try to understand what people find important outside of work (family, sport, travel, down time) and when they do their best work during the day and support them to balance those two within the confines of the job role. This is hard as it puts an additional pressure and demand on the senior staff to monitor this. It's in the nature of a lot of designers to give a lot of themselves, so it's fair for the job to try to respect that.
Read the full interview on the Designers Mind website here.
Foundry Lighting expands into Dubai
(UAE) - Lighting design consultant Foundry has expanded its business into Dubai, building on the success of its London-based operations.
Due to the significant increase in demand for projects in the Middle East, Foundry now has a permanent Dubai presence to service the local community.
Lighting industry expert Jason Perks has been appointed by Foundry as the new Director of the Dubai studio. He will be responsible for leading projects in the Middle East and other international regions, as well as being part of the strategic team to further develop and grow Foundry.
Perks said: “Having previously lived in Dubai, leading major international brands throughout the gulf region and beyond, I am delighted to be returning to Dubai and growing Foundry’s presence in the Middle East.”
Foundry Director Neale Smith added: “We are delighted to have expanded our business with the opening of the Dubai studio and the appointment of Jason. Jason and I have worked together in different guises for more than 15 years, so it is amazing that he is now a pat of the Foundry team.
“It is an exciting time for Foundry as we are experiencing outstanding levels of growth. We are looking forward to what the future holds, and our new Dubai studio puts us in a strong position to provide an even better service to projects in the Middle East.
“Our mission is to deliver projects with passion, precision and purpose - not to mention enjoying the collaborative journey and having some fun along the way. We are thrilled to be starting our journey in Dubai and forming a truly international team.”
Women in Lighting to host series of walks for International Men’s Day
(Worldwide) - The global Women in Lighting project has always been focused on gender equity and creating as many industry situations as possible where the scenario is 50:50.
While this has meant the project has previously celebrated International Women’s Day, this year they are also marking International Men’s Day on 19 November.
Women in Lighting are using the day as an opportunity to celebrate the positive value that men bring to our world, our families and communities, while also considering the themes of International Men’s Day 2021 - improving gender relations and promoting gender equality, not only for men but for women too.
Alongside WIL partner Designers Mind, the initiative is also using the day as a chance to look at the global facts and figures relating to men’s mental wellbeing. With this in mind, WIL’s male supporters and allies are hosting a series of international walks, taking place on 19 November.
Designers Mind is also creating a set of talking points for each walk focused on mental heath and wellbeing, giving male supporters the chance to get out of the office, connect, discuss and consider the themes promoted for 2021.
Anyone interested in taking part or hosting a walk can contact hello@lightcollective.net. A London walk will be hosted by Marcus Steffen at 1pm on 19 November. For more information on this walk, contact marcus@mslightingdesign.co.uk.
Women in Lighting has asked anyone taking part to share a photo of their walk online, tagging @womeninlighting and using the hashtag #WILInternationalMensDay.
Zumtobel Group receives EcoVadis Gold medal
(Europe) - Sustainability rating platform EcoVadis has awarded the Zumtobel Group a gold medal for the first time.
After receiving silver status several times, the company was granted gold after continuously optimising its CSR activities along its value chain, and in the process joining the top 3% of the 75,000+ companies assessed.
Mario Wintschnig, CSR Manager at Zumtobel Group, said: “More and more companies and decision-makers take sustainability criteria into account in their procurement and purchasing decisions. With EcoVadis, we take the Zumtobel Group’s sustainability performance to a level of legitimate and independent comparability with more than 75,000 enterprises. It makes me very proud that we have been awarded the gold medal for our performance and that the Zumtobel Group ranks among the top 3% of all companies assessed.”
The Group was awarded gold status due to significant improvements in the overall rating of the topics analysed by EcoVadis. The EcoVadis certification assesses companies in four different areas. Zumtobel Group was ranked in the top 1% in the Environment category and the total score. In the Labour and Human Rights category (top 8%), Sustainable Procurement (top 10%), and Ethics (top 5%), the company is also in the upper field of the ranking.
The Zumtobel Group has now set its sights on the Platinum medal - the highest possible award. This will support the company’s sustainability measures and its target of climate neutrality by 2025.
Introducing LiGHT 22 – a high-end dedicated lighting event
(UK) – [d]arc media launches LiGHT 22 - the UK’s only dedicated lighting trade show.
Building on the success of the highly-regarded ARC Show, which ran from 2004 – 2009, LiGHT 22 is a lighting exhibition for specifiers and designers, brought to you by [d]arc media, publishers of arc and darc magazines, and the team behind the incredibly popular [d]arc awards and [d]arc sessions.
Held on 22 & 23 November 2022, at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London, LiGHT will revive the lighting design and specification exhibition that has been lacking for too long. High-end lighting manufacturers will exhibit their latest product collections alongside a two-day talks programme and late-night drinks event.
[d]arc media Managing Director Paul James said of the new event: “I am very excited to announce the launch of the LiGHT exhibition at the Business Design Centre next November. The lighting industry has many happy memories of The ARC Show at the BDC over a decade ago and we want to bring that spirit back to the lighting event calendar.
“There is a new breed of lighting specifiers and suppliers that weren’t part of the industry then so didn’t have the chance to experience the event. This will bring friends, old and new, together to do business and network in a friendly, dynamic environment. I am confident that the time is right to create a boutique lighting event in a fantastic venue in London, the world hub of lighting design. I look forward to welcoming everyone there.”
Max Bull, Executive Director of Venue Sales at Business Design Centre, added: “We are absolutely delighted to welcome the launch of LiGHT at the BDC in November 2022. The BDC has always been regarded as the natural home for high quality design interiors events and I am confident Paul and his team's vision will be extremely well received by the community it serves.
“I am personally looking forward to supporting this show for many years to come and we are fully behind the organisers in wanting to create one of the most exciting launch events the UK next year.”
The UK has the second largest design industry in the world and with London experiencing a boom in design-led businesses since 2010, lighting has become a vital aspect of the design industry and process.
Of the 217 lighting design practices in the UK, over half (116) are in the Greater London area (source ILDS 2021). This is by far the biggest concentration of lighting designers in one city in the world. And that’s not to mention the thousands of interior designers and architects that are based in the UK’s capital and beyond. Most of these designers not only specify in the UK but have a significant portfolio overseas.
LiGHT 22 caters to this ever-growing design sector and is a new offering for lighting design built on [d]arc media’s knowledge and experience of the lighting specification market.
For more information head to www.lightexpo.london
Barbara Horton given IALD Lifetime Achievement Award
(USA) - Barbara Horton, Senior Principal Emeritus at HLB Lighting Design, has been recognised by the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD) with its Lifetime Achievement Award.
This award is given to individuals who are classed as pioneers in the industry, and have “gone above and beyond to give back to the lighting design community throughout their careers”.
Horton is among a select group of professionals to have received this distinction, being just the eighth lighting design professional to receive the award in IALD history - among previous winners are founding HLB Principals Stephen Lees (honoured in 2019) and Jules Horton (honoured in 2000).
The recognition follows two further Lifetime Achievement Awards for Horton earlier in the year from Women in Lighting and the Edison Report.
For the past 40 years, Horton has served as a leader and mentor to HLB staff and the greater lighting industry. During her tenure, HLB grew to 15 Princpals/Owners, with more than 90 team members located in seven offices across North America, serving clients worldwide. She has guided the firm through a successful ownership transition, its first acquisition, and created a culture of design excellence with a focus on the business of design.
For the past year and a half, she has been working side-by-side with firm leadership and new CEO Carrie Hawley in preparation for her retirement and the continued legacy of HLB.
In honour of both Horton and Lees, and their contribution to the industry, a business excellence leadership fund in their name is currently being developed to promote the continued success of the profession. Lighting design leaders are preparing for a formal announcement and launch of the fund in early 2022 - its mission is to empower individuals with business education to grow and sustain successful lighting design practices globally.
Following the award, Horton said: “Volunteering with the IALD gave me fundamental leadership skills and a community to share global perspectives and make an impact on the lighting design profession.”
www.iald.org
www.hlblighting.com
DALI Alliance: DALI Connectivity – Choice and flexibility with DALI+ and Wireless Gateways
The DALI lighting-control protocol is evolving to encompass both wired and wireless connectivity. With both DALI+, which denotes DALI over wireless and IP-based networks, and standardized Wireless to DALI Gateways, the DALI Alliance is opening the door to greater choice and freedom for lighting specifiers.
This webinar, presented by Scott Wade and Paul Drosihn, explains our new specifications for DALI+ over carriers including Thread, as well as DALI gateways to Bluetooth mesh or Zigbee ecosystems.
Clear Lighting Flexglo F2222
Flexglo F2222 meets the lighting design requirements where a wide luminous surface yet visual comfort is needed for a direct view of the façade, delivering rich colour-changing and animation choreography effects via DMX control. The structure adopting ClearTech TwinFlex and PinBoost further enhances the robustness of the PCB and LEDs inside when bending. The branded silicone material plus C-Mask treatment on the emitting surface endow it with features of self-cleaning and UV resistance to maintain the authentic colour much longer.
ELR Orion 2
The new Orion 2 is a series of micro pinhole downlights that is small and versatile, designed with ELR’s signature modular concept to be paired with ELR 20 series LED modules. Even with a minuscule aperture of just 15mm in diameter, the Orion 2 is able to produce up to 748lm output at up to 40° beam angle with the aid of X-Beam converging optical lens that are equipped on ELR LED modules to maximise luminous efficiency.
eldoLED Interoperable Tunable White Solution
Amplify your Quality of Light with this eldoLED Tunable White solution: DUALdrive LED drivers with eldoLED BLE radios and Casambi wireless control. eldoLED’s DUALdrive family incorporates its signature LightShape technology — the colour science behind dynamic white and incandescent Dim to Warm lighting. eldoLED drivers and technology bring your Human-Centric Lighting visions to life while remaining flicker-safe and ensuring seamless deep-dimming.
Bright Special Lighting Vates
Vates downlights are designed as the perfect lighting tool for both darklight technology and wallwashing, to meet the challenges of various applications such as offices, shops, museums and restaurants. Its embedded Darklight technology delivers high efficiency and visual comfort. Due to its source and components that are smartly set inside the fixture, its UGR degree is significantly low. Vates downlights come with a frame or trimless option and removable shades without tools.
