I recently had the pleasure of attending the International Association of Lighting Designer’s (IALD) Enlighten Americas conference in Vancouver, which was my first trip to Enlighten (and hopefully not my last). My coworker Erick Leininger and I had the honor of attending the conference as emerging lighting design professionals and were sponsored by the IALD and the Lighting Industry Resource Council (LIRC) to attend the conference, so we owe them a big thank you!
With nearly 400 people attending the conference, Enlighten was a great time and I was excited every minute to be there. Richard Seymore, the keynote speaker, delivered an inspiring speech about the possibilities in technology and the potential for us as designers. I also attended a variety of educational seminars, with topics ranging from art and architecture to the science of LEDs. My favorite seminar was “Light Art as Inspiration for Architectural Lighting Design”, which focused on light as a medium in art and the modern artists that approach their work in this way. The educational part of the conference ended on an even higher note with its closing session presented in Pecha Kucha, which left me even more motivated and proud to be a lighting designer and part of the IALD.
Besides the seminars, I was able to attend a variety of social networking events and parties. I was amazed at how many young lighting designers were at the event and how excited they all were about the profession; it was inspiring. Most of the conference was held at the Hyatt Regency Vancouver, but the IALD also held a social event at the city’s convention center on the water, which was spectacular. During my free time, I explored and enjoyed the city, including Gastown, with other emerging lighting design professionals (as well as seasoned lighting designers) and had one of the best times of my life.
I can’t thank The Lighting Practice, the IALD, and the LIRC enough for supporting me and giving me this opportunity. I look forward to seeing all of the people I’ve made contact with (and those I even made friends with) at Lightfair 2013 in Philly!
