August 4, 2025
Lumen West 2025 Honors Excellence in Lighting
Lighting people unite for awards, camaraderie and a showcase of regional achievements
On Friday evening, August 1, roughly 350 members of the Southern California lighting community gathered under clear skies on the grounds of the Skirball Cultural Center for Lumen West 2025 — the annual awards event hosted by the Los Angeles and Orange County sections of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES). A longtime fixture on the region’s design calendar, this 52nd iteration marked another chapter in a long-running celebration of lighting excellence across the IESLA and IESOC sections.
The format remained faithful to the Southern California interpretation of the Illumination Awards: a three-act structure featuring a cocktail hour, a theater-style awards presentation, and a seated dinner with DJ entertainment. Each segment ran about 90 minutes, with the final act unfolding across 37 ten-top tables in the grand ballroom.
Above: From left to right, Al Uszynski, Shady Wassily of Lumenwerx, 2023 Beacon Award recipient Patrick Quigley, and Sage Russell of Lumenwerx.
Familiar Faces, Continued Contributions
Sara Schonour returned as emcee for the fourth consecutive year, guiding the audience through the program with clarity, ease and well-crafted puns. Also in attendance was IES Executive Director Colleen Harper, who offered brief remarks highlighting the IES’s ongoing commitment to both the technical rigor and creative potential of lighting. Her comments included a nod to the upcoming IES25 national conference, set later this month in Anaheim, and the importance of staying connected across sections and specialties.
Above: IES Executive Director Colleen Harper with Lumen West emcee Sara Schonour.
Section Service Awards were presented to key contributors in both regions. In Orange County, the IESOC Service Award went to Richard Lund. The IESLA Service Award, traditionally symbolized by a miniature Stanley Cup-style trophy passed down each year, was jointly awarded to Kate Furst and Allan Weaver. The logistics of a shared custody agreement for the traveling award remain to be determined.
This year’s Beacon Award, the highest individual honor from IESLA and a recognition of lifetime achievement, was presented to Dawn Hollingsworth, a longtime lighting designer and former president of the IES Los Angeles Section. She also received an Award of Merit for her recent work on the Glendale Central Library Youth Services Renovation.
Above (L to R): Dawn Hollingsworth, recipient of the Beacon Award, with her wife Paula Proteau
In her remarks, Hollingsworth reflected on the evolving role of artificial intelligence in lighting design and called for practical, responsible engagement with emerging tools while still delivering designs with a human touch. She also acknowledged her well-earned reputation for applying rigorous scrutiny to lighting products—particularly those brought in by reps hoping to earn a place in her studio’s specifications. It was a speech that was both thought-provoking and sentimental—rooted in experience, and grounded in the values that have defined her career.
Spotlight on Design Excellence
The evening’s design awards were presented in two tiers: Awards of Excellence and Awards of Merit. Among the standout moments, Lightswitch received two Awards of Excellence, both in the new Experiential Lighting Design category—for Enchanted Forest of Light 2024 and “Dimensions” by Hybycozo. These projects reinforced the firm’s continued influence in immersive, large-scale installations.
Oculus Light Studio also earned an Award of Excellence, recognized for its work on the Paramount Library. The firm added two more Awards of Merit, bringing its total to three and further demonstrating its consistent performance across both interior and exterior lighting categories.
Above: Archit Jain of Oculus Light Studio accepts one of three awards presented to the firm at Lumen West 2025
Lighting in the Shadow of Immigration Enforcement
Accepting the Award of Merit for Outdoor Lighting at Washington Elementary School in Santa Ana, Mariana Ballina of LPA, Inc. delivered a speech that moved beyond design inspiration and into the terrain of social commentary. The project, she noted, was deeply personal—a space meant to inspire and welcome families in Santa Ana, a community facing mounting fears tied not to architecture, but to government policy.
She began by naming what’s a mounting and pressing issue in Southern California: that people in communities like Santa Ana are being “detained without due process, without warrants, and in many cases, in spite of evidence of legal status.” Ballina described how fear has crept into daily routines with a family member urging her to avoid ethnic supermarkets and to carry a passport at all times.
“The effects are real...and that we even have to consider how to best protect ourselves against our own government is dangerous and outrageous.”
— Mariana Ballina, LPA, Inc
Though she expressed pride in the lighting work — meant to create joy, security and a sense of belonging — Ballina questioned the value of well-designed spaces if families are too afraid to gather in them.
Ballina warned the audience she’d exceed the 60-second time limit—and did, using the extra minutes to deliver a message rooted in lived experience and quiet urgency. In a city where awards stages — from the Oscars and Emmys to a lighting gala — can sometimes blur the line between craft and conviction, her speech echoed a familiar pattern: recipients using the spotlight to connect their work to broader social issues.
Ballina closed by urging support for immigrant rights organizations and affirming the purpose of her craft: to serve lives, not just sites. Her remarks, deeply personal and unapologetically political, drew a standing ovation from most of the attendees.
Acknowledging the Work
As always, Lumen West showcased the breadth of talent across Southern California’s lighting professionals. From large firms to solo studios, from experiential environments to libraries and law offices, the range of awarded projects highlighted the diversity of design thinking in the region.
Multi-award recipients included:
- Lightswitch – Two Awards of Excellence (Experiential)
- Oculus Light Studio – One Award of Excellence, Two Awards of Merit
- LPA, Inc. – Two Awards of Merit across varied sectors
- Lighting Design Alliance – Two Awards of Merit in both commercial and institutional categories
- esquared lighting design – Two Awards of Merit for residential interiors
Awards of Excellence
Enchanted Forest of Light 2024
Experiential Lighting Design
Lightswitch
Chris Medvitz
Paramount Library
Interior Lighting Design
Oculus Light Studio
Archit Jain, Sarah Wang, Leslie Crapster-Pregont
"Dimensions" by Hybycozo
Experiential Lighting Design
Lightswitch
Chris Medvitz
Awards of Merit
Delta One Lounge at LAX
Interior Lighting Design
Arup
Tena Pettit
Woolf Residence
Interior Lighting Design
esquared lighting design
Erin Erdman & Colby Freel
HPS Law Office
Interior Lighting Design
Oculus Light Studio
Archit Jain
Desert Art
Interior Lighting Design
Rosemaire Allaire Lighting Design
Rosemarie Allaire
Vivante Assisted Living and Memory Care
Interior Lighting Design
Lighting Design Alliance
Ken Moore
Glendale Central Library Youth Services Renovation
Interior Lighting Design
Darkhorse Lightworks, LLC
Dawn Hollingsworth
Johnson Lexus Durham
Interior Lighting Design
Lighting Design Alliance
Andy Powell & Panitkwan (Arex) Soontharuch
Edwards Life Science Campus Expansion
Interior Lighting Design
LPA, Inc.
Becky Ceballos, Jen Ozai, Ellie Motevalian, Jane You
Hollywood Hills Home
Interior Lighting Design
esquared lighting design
Erin Erdman & Haley Bendis
Mayor Clayton's WonderLab
Interior Lighting Design
Visual Terrain
Christina Martin & Steve Vajk
Vitarel
Interior Lighting Design
HLB Lighting Design
Tina Aghassian
Washington Elementary School
Outdoor Lighting
LPA, Inc.
Mariana Ballina, Debra Fox
Marian Gardens at Our Lady of La Vang Shrine
Outdoor Lighting
Oculus Light Studio
Archit Jain, Sarah Wang, Leslie Crapster-Pregont
TVS Office Headquarters Relocation
Energy and Environmental Design
Lighting Design Alliance
Chip Israel and Chris Bright
