The Three Cs of Design

I often speak with Howard Brandston, one of lighting’s elder statesmen, to get his perspective on issues that impact the lighting design community. His 50-plus years in the field give him tremendous insight into the evolution of the profession. During our most recent conversation, we talked as usual about a pretty wide range of topics—everything from the incandescent phaseout to quality-of-light issues—but one of Howard’s comments in particular stood out to me: Underlying all of his work, all of the issues he devotes his time to, he said, is a constant sense of curiosity. He’s not content to accept things simply as they are, and curiosity is his fuel, his energy....

Posted By: edonoff | Time: 6:38:00 PM | Permalink and Comments (0 Total)

Where Have All the Lamps and Ballasts Gone?

When did buying a light bulb become so complicated? What used to be a seemingly simple activity is now intertwined with considerations about energy, price, and technology. This has me thinking about light sources in a way I never imagined. But what’s so surprising about that, you might ask? (I am, after all, the editor of ARCHITECTURAL LIGHTING.) The truth is that I, like all of the other consumers who make purchases in their daily lives, have taken light bulbs for granted—and, by that, I mean Thomas Edison’s incandescent. This object, a fragile filament encased in a thin shroud of glass with a not-too-complex socket, has become so ubiquitous, it has assumed the cultural iconography of representing an idea. (In an interesting play on symbols, The New York Times’ Green Inc. blog that covers energy and environmental issues uses a CFL bulb in place of an incandescent. I wonder: Will the image of a diode ever reach this level of symbolism?)...

Posted By: edonoff | Time: 6:25:00 PM | Permalink and Comments (0 Total)

Report From Frankfurt (A|L April e-notes)

I’m writing this from Frankfurt where I, like millions of other travelers, am in limbo due to the ash cloud sweeping over Europe that has grounded air travel for the past four days. No one will soon forget Iceland has volcanoes, and if you can pronounce its name—Eyjafjallajokul—more power to you to. Hour-by-hour, day-by-day, millions of travelers wait with anticipation: Will air travel resume or will another day’s flights be cancelled? I am desperately hoping that I will be sitting on a plane at 5pm on Tuesday traveling safely back to Washington, but as of Sunday evening there is no word.
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Posted By: edonoff | Time: 6:17:00 PM | Permalink and Comments (0 Total)

Telling the Truth

The greatest challenge facing the solid-state lighting industry is not a technology issue, but a public relations one. Simply put, it’s a matter of trust. And there is a significant lack of this coming from the design community these days when it comes to some manufacturers of LEDs, who are trying to rebound from the lingering impact that their false product claims and unreliable goods have made in the marketplace....

Posted By: edonoff | Time: 11:04:00 AM | Permalink and Comments (0 Total)

Safeguarding Lighting Design

What constitutes professional qualifications? How does a lighting designer define their work? These are two important questions that have come up in a number of conversations I have had with individuals in the lighting design industry. Recently, I have noticed several situations in which lighting design is either being omitted or limited in discussions. Consequently, questions regarding the importance of lighting qualifications have come up....

Posted By: edonoff | Time: 10:56:00 AM | Permalink and Comments (0 Total)

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