The New York City Section of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IESNYC) announced the recipients of the 2009 Lumen Awards at the 41st Annual Lumen Gala held in New York City on June 10. The Lumen Awards publicly recognizes professionalism, excellence, and originality in lighting design.

Over 600 leaders in lighting design, architecture, interior design, engineering and manufacturing gathered at New York’s Chelsea Piers for what is considered the industry’s most highly regarded event. Special guests at the gala included Laurie Kerr, senior policy advisor on Buildings and Energy–Mayor’s Office, City of New York; Russell Unger, executive director, U.S. Green Building Council of New York; Ron Gibbons, president of the Illuminating Engineering Society; Rick Bell, executive director–American Institute of Architects New York City Chapter; Jennifer Jones, International Association of Lighting Designers; Kathleen Carlisle, Designers Lighting Forum of NY; and Jeanine Caunt, vice chair of the Industrial Designers Society of America NYC Section.

A total of 12 Lumen Awards were presented by Elena Mikoleski, Acuity Brands Lighting and Adrienne Shulman, GE Lighting and Industrial to winners in four major categories: Lumen Award of Excellence, the highest level of recognition for permanent architectural application; Lumen Feltman Award of Excellence, the highest level of recognition for excellence in retail merchandising lighting; Lumen Award of Merit, meritorious recognition awards for permanent architectural application; and Lumen Citation, special recognition awards for an art installation, technical detail, portion of a single project, temporary installation or other work. Additionally, IESNYC Brilliance Awards, IES Section Service Awards and the IES Meritorious Award were also presented to individuals for their dedicated service and contributions to the lighting community.

The Lumen Award of Excellence was awarded to Fisher Marantz Stone, Inc. for the Interior of the Museum of Islamic Arts in Doha, Qatar. The firm was also honored with the Lumen Citation for Integration of Light, Architecture and Signage for TKTS Ticket Booth, Times Square, New York City. “The most challenging aspect was to see the projects through while maintaining the spirit with which they began,” said Paul Marantz, founding and design principal of Fisher Marantz Stone, Inc. “Design is theoretical, construction is practical.” Joining Mr. Marantz on stage to accept the award was His Excellency Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz al-Nasser, Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations.

Other multiple-award winners include Focus Lighting and Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design. Focus Lighting was honored with three awards: two Lumen Awards of Merit for the Royalton Hotel, New York City, and the Casino of the Winds at Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT, and the Lumen Citation for Illumination of Restaurant Courtyard for Rock Sugar, Los Angeles, CA. “This is a delightful tribute to the designers at Focus Lighting,” said Paul Gregory, founder and president of Focus Lighting. Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design was honored with two awards: the Lumen Award of Merit for their design work on Terminus 100, Atlanta, GA and the Lumen Citation for Featured Visual Element for GSC Group, New York City.

This year’s judges were Jack Bailey, IES, LC, LEED-AP; Craig A. Bernecker, Ph.D., FIESNA, LC; Elizabeth Donoff, editor of Architectural Lighting magazine; Addison Kelly, IALD; Hayden McKay, AIA, FIALD, FIES; Jim Pearson, associate, Robert A.M. Stern Architects; and Matthew Tanteri, IESNA, SBSE, IALD Educator.

Special tributes were paid posthumously to Jenifer K. Dyson and Paul H. Trively. Renée Cooley and Emily Monato of Cooley Monato Studios honored Dyson, a member of their firm who passed away this past January, and Manny Feris honored Trively, a member of his firm Lutron Electronics, who passed away in April. Trively, 62, was vice president of Specification Sales at Lutron Electronics in Coopersburg, PA and had been with the company for 41 years. He was a board member of the International Architectural Lighting Designers, and a member of the Illuminating Engineering Society and the Lighting Industry Resource Council.

2009 Lumen Awards Winners

Award of Excellence

Museum of Islamic Arts – Interior, Doha, Qatar
Lighting Design Firm: Fisher Marantz Stone, Inc. – Paul Marantz, Hank Forrest, Rebecca Ho-Dion,
Randy Fisher
Architect: I.M. Pei Architect – I.M. Pei

Unlike much new construction in the Middle East, this building is uncluttered and spacious, and is filled with references to the Islamic world’s architectural heritage. The interior recalls the cascading spatial organization of great Islamic mosques. Entering, the visitor discovers a complex vertical space leading upward to a dome and oculus at the top. The lighting design encourages that act. Reminiscent of traditional pendant oil lamps, a great circular chandelier mediates the space.

Feltman Award of Excellence

Vera Wang New York Flagship Store, New York City
Lighting Design Firm: Tillotson Design Associates – Suzan Tillotson, Leslie Stelly,
Christopher Cheap
Architect: Gabellini Sheppard Associates LLP – Michael Gabellini, Elina Cardet
Project Owner: Vera Wang

The lighting for the 2000 sq. ft. Vera Wang boutique in Manhattan is based on the changing qualities of a white box theater. The elegant lighting scheme overcomes a 23′-0″ to 8′-6″ ceiling height shift, contrasting a dynamic, loft-like experience in the front salon area with a light infused, layered experience in the windowless, rear salon. The lighting successfully creates a unique shopping experience in the front while encouraging shoppers to descend the elegant mid-stage stairs and linger in the rear back stage area. Up against a fast track schedule and challenging site conditions, Suzan Tillotson and her team finished the project in one year—in time to meet the Grand Opening deadline. “The success of this project was truly due to collaboration between the architect, lighting designer, lighting fixture and controls manufacturers, their representatives and the contractors. Everyone went over and above what was expected of them to get this complex project completed on time,” said Tillotson.

Merit Awards

Terminus 100, Atlanta, GA
Lighting Design Firm: Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design – Francesca Bettridge, Michael Hennes, Mitul Parekh, Nira Wattanachote
Architects: Duda/Paine Architects, HKS Architects
Project Owner: Cousins Properties Incorporated

This tower is a monumental glass volume chiseled on the diagonal to create a bold V-shaped form and a translucent, triangular top. The most difficult task was to evenly illuminate, with complete color and brightness consistency, a surface that transitions from a large sloped plane covering mechanical areas to slender lines that needed to be illuminated from within tenant spaces. By carefully coordinating different sources and wattages appropriate for each architectural space, the lighting design accommodates the change in scale and material from one glass surface to another. The seamless result belies this complex challenge.

Royalton Hotel, New York City
Lighting Design Firm: Focus Lighting Team: Paul Gregory, Ken Ventry, Fiona Wong,
Kenneth Schutz

The iconic Royalton Hotel’s extensive renovation recreates a lush atmosphere for travelers and city-dwellers alike. Housed in one long city block, the lobby and restaurant are outfitted with walls of wooden beads, fitted blue leather, woven rope formations and warm wood paneling. The architectural and decorative lighting offers fragility and warmth amongst this strikingly handsome interior. Through its physical transformation, low energy usage is maintained while additional layers of light are added to the rich textural environment. The energy-efficient xenon and LED fixtures evenly light wall planes and highlight architectural features to make this historic hotel a spatial masterpiece.

Casino of the Winds at Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT
Lighting Design Firm: Focus Lighting Team: Paul Gregory, Christine Hope, Michael Cummings, Jeff Shepherd, Catherine Tate, Dan Nichols

The design at Casino of the Wind evokes a dreamy windswept landscape. An undulating sculptural wall surrounds the space, while the upper volume is laced with 4 manifestations of winds: cloud chandeliers, glittering chrome leaves, fabric hangings and fluttering wings. To achieve this while keeping the space energy-efficient, many sources were LED or Metal Halide. This allowed us to build up layers of colored light, while keeping wattage minimal. Dim lighting levels were set by screening the halide accents with wire mesh, while in many of the custom fixtures, low accessibility required LED fixtures with an estimated 10-year life.

Bar Boulud, New York City
Lighting Design Firm: Tirschwell & Co., Inc.: Matthew Tirschwell, Eleanor MacDonald

This casually elegant duplex restaurant evokes a wine cellar with its barrel vaulted ceiling, warm expressions of floors of oak, and stone. On the main floor, all lighting was completely concealed including that for the crushed stone wall held together with woven metalwork. Multiple light sources were bounced off of warm broad palettes to create a soft effect with key and fill components. Working with a barrel vaulted ceiling was their biggest challenge. “It was extremely difficult trying to light everything with two architectural slots,” said Matthew Tirschwell, principal of Tirschwell & Co., Inc. The team of Tirschwell & Co. successfully met their challenges with incredibly flattering lighting for this trendy, modern atmosphere.

Citation Awards

LUMEN CITATION FOR TECHNICAL LIGHTING ACHIEVEMENT

New York City Waterfalls, New York City
Lighting Design Firm: Jaros, Baum & Bolles – Michael Mehl

One of the most ambitious works for the NYC Public Art Fund to date, the NYC Waterfalls temporarily transformed the city’s shorelines into a nighttime visual and kinetic ‘event’. Designed to mimic “Moonlight” in both color and affect, arrays of white LED’s were blended and designed optically to accentuate the falling water and point of river entry, while eliminating the source from the multitude of nighttime-spectator viewing angles. In addition, the lighting liberated each waterfall from its ambient cityscape, creating a distinct nighttime spectacle to support each waterfall. “Sometimes lighting requires conviction and perseverance. “This was no exception in convincing the artist that the project needed artificial lighting to fulfill his vision,” said Mehl.

LUMEN CITATION FOR INTEGRATION OF LIGHT, ARCHITECTURE AND SIGNAGE

TKTS Ticket Booth, Times Square, New York City
Lighting Design Firm: Fisher Marantz Stone, Inc. – Paul Marantz, Barry Citrin
Architect: Perkins Eastman
Competition Architect: John Choi and Tai Ropiha
Landscape Architect: Judith Heintz Landscape Architecture – Judith Heintz
Landscape Architect: William Fellow

As people-watching has become a legitimate spectator sport, what could be more fitting than to build a fiery glass grandstand in the heart of Times Square as the roof of the new TKTS discount ticket kiosk? Since Times Square’s current dazzle is largely the illumination provided by countless LED video-driven signs, it was only fitting and practical to use an LED source for this project at its epicenter. The original booth was the quintessential “building as sign,” and its replacement had to be the same. The designers reasoned that, as most Times Square signs are now highly kinetic in their “building as sign,” motion would be provided by visitors clambering up for a good look at the ‘Great White Way.’

LUMEN CITATION FOR MERCHANDISE LIGHTING

Elizabeth Arden Fifth Avenue, New York City
Lighting Design Firm: RS Lighting Design – Randy Sabedra
Architect: Highland Associates, NYC – Glenn Leitch and Eric Scott
Project Owner: Elizabeth Arden

At the entry, a 14-foot high ribbon of red lacquered steel, as sleek and shiny as a luxurious sports car, curves around beauty station displays, and draws customers into a world of constantly changing visual delights. To enhance the flow of space a backlit ceiling floats above the red wall, designed to ensure direct white light and prevent merchandise and people from appearing red. Accent lights create highlight, and create a dialoged between exposed and concealed, rectangular and circular to mimic the interior design layout. Ending the store is a towering vintage crystal chandelier shimmering over a circular skincare table. “The Elizabeth Arden store truly surrounds you in a world of beauty, elegance and glamour. To be recognized for its lighting design is an honor and is shared with the architectural firm of Highland Associates,” said Randy Sabedra of RS Lighting Design.

LUMEN CITATION FOR ILLUMINATION OF RESTAURANT COURTYARD

Rock Sugar, Los Angeles, CA
Lighting Design Firm: Focus Lighting Team: Paul Gregory, Christine Hope, Catherine Tate

At Rock Sugar, L.A., energy efficiency and dramatic design are united to create a distinct atmosphere. Among the South Asian décor, the architectural lighting accents indigenous materials and enlivens this bold environment. In the open-air courtyard, towering carved panels catch the high-contrast graze of halogen up-lights and swaying LED lanterns create movement and romance above. Fire pits at each seating area create a natural sense of warmth and ambiance. Throughout the space, the use of efficient and versatile dimmable LEDs and Halogen lamps meet energy needs and create depth among the rich palette and ornate interior.

LUMEN CITATION FOR ART INSTALLATION IN A PUBLIC SPACE

This Way – Under the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, NY
Lighting Design Firm: Tillett Lighting Design, Inc.: Linnaea Tillett

Glowing underneath the iconic Brooklyn Bridge is a permanent light artwork that transforms an old backdoor into a welcoming gateway to the neighborhood of DUMBO. “This Way” weaves together art, infrastructure, light, architecture, social science and design. Linear fiber optic arrays engage pedestrians and direct them through the urban maze. Blue LED down lights illuminate sidewalks and provide a glowing beacon for drivers exiting the bridge. “What excites me is that we helped transform this negative part of the Brooklyn Bridge infrastructure—a default space with no integrity of its own—into a lively nexus of human interaction. In this small way, we helped facilitate the art of the public encounter, that dance of interchange between strangers so necessary for a vibrant city,” said Linnaea Tillett, Ph.D., founder/principal of Tillet Lighting Design, Inc.

LUMEN CITATION FOR FEATURED VISUAL ELEMENT

GSC Group, New York City
Lighting Design Firm: Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design: Stephen D. Bernstein,
Sang Lee
Architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP

The lighting for this NY financial firm sought to humanize its high-tech workplace with the look of an upscale boutique hotel. The biggest challenge was to evenly rear-illuminate an art piece, (250 feet long covering 2,200 square feet), that wraps around the core of the two-story office and keep within the allotted watts. “GSC was a project with a strong concept that was supported by a very collaborative team. It’s not often that an architect either wants to or is able to alter their design to realize a very special design. But the designers at SOM were up for it! A constructive ‘give-and-take’ on this project provided us with a rare opportunity to achieve something truly unique,” said Stephen Bernstein, founder and principal of Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design.