The Illuminating Engineering Society Announces 2023 Award Winners

The Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) presented the recipients of the 50th Annual Illumination Awards on Aug. 3, during the 2023 IES Annual Conference. Nine projects were recognized, including two Special Citations, six Awards of Excellence, and the coveted Award of Distinction. Technical and service achievements were also presented during the event, along with the recipients of the 2023 Brandston Award and the Besal Lighting Education Fund 2024 Scholarships.

Technical and Service Achievements

IES awards for technical and service achievements were also presented. The IES Medal Award, which recognizes meritorious technical achievement that has furthered the profession, art or knowledge of illuminating engineering, was given to Lisa Heschong.

The Louis B. Marks Award, named in honor of the first president of the IES and presented to a member of the Society in recognition of exceptional service of a nontechnical nature, was given to Alan Laird Lewis.

The recipients of the 2023 IES Distinguished Service Award, presented to individuals who have significantly furthered the mission of the IES in nontechnical areas with at least 15 years of dedicated service, are Dan Blitzer, Shirley Coyle, Bob Henderson, Peter Hugh, and Shelli Sedlak-Mejia.

Recipients of the IES Fellow Designation, which awards members of the Society for their valuable contributions to the technical activities of the Society, to the art or science of illumination, or to the related scientific or engineering fields, are Dawn De Grazio, Eunice Noell-Waggoner, and Morgan Pattison.

The IES president also recognizes member excellence with the IES Presidential Award. This year, IES president Frank Agraz Jr. (2022-2023) recognized Liliana Gonzalez (Mexico City Section), Mark Lien, and Dave Young.

Award of Distinction

The Award of Distinction, awarded for extraordinary achievement in lighting design, was presented to Liska ehf, an Icelandic electrical and lighting design firm, for their work on the Hallgrímskirkja Cathedral interior lighting in Reykjavík, Iceland. The cathedral's exterior lighting received an award of excellence.

Special Citations

Also presented were two Edwin F. Guth Interior Lighting Design Awards. The first, a special citation for skylight lighting for restoration and recreation of the laylights, was given to Schuler Shook for the DAR Constitution Hall renovation, phase 3. The other award, a special citation for immersive and experiential lighting, was given to Walt Disney Imagineering for Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser.