Podcast
Lighting Matters®
Hosted by Avraham Mor & Lisa Reed · EN
Welcome to the podcast about Lighting Matters! Our unflinching conversations uncover the nuances and complexities that shape the craft of lighting design. Tune in to explore the pivotal ‘whys’ behind a lighting designer’s choices and find honest answers to your most challenging lighting questions, because Lighting Matters®.
13episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Episode 35: Zero Out of a Hundred: Jen Park on Why Lighting Never Gets Credit
Jun 200:55:40Tap to summarizeOf 100 award-winning architecture projects, how many listed a lighting designer in the credits? The answer should embarrass the entire industry.Jen Park, principal at Chicago's Park Fowler, joins hosts Avi Mor of Morlights and Lisa Reed of Reed Burkett Lighting Design to examine what architects genuinely understand about lighting—and where the gaps are. Park describes lighting as the critical thread in architectural composition: invisible when right, conspicuous when wrong. Who's actually making that argument to developers? The discussion covers the ROI case for lighting design, color temperature consistency across building types, and one startling data point—of 100 recent award-winning projects across AIA and Dezeen, not one credited a lighting designer in its submission. In This Episode: (00:00) Park Fowler's founding and accelerated firm transition (07:57) Lighting as a critical compositional layer in architecture (17:48) Architecture school's gap in electric lighting education (21:33) Museum spaces as field labs for reading light (30:07) The ROI argument for lighting designers on developer projects (35:13) Color temperature consistency and the build-to-sell challenge (37:53) Material samples, color accuracy, and Neocon vignettes (44:22) The four visual professionals of the built environment (50:28) Lighting designers uncredited in architectural award submissions (56:18) Architect as conductor: the full-team design model (59:53) Favorite illuminated spaces: The Rookery Chicago, Jumex Museum in Mexico City Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources:Material Bank (material sample sourcing tool) materialbank.com AIA Chicago (business forums, awards, and board service) aiachicago.org Dezeen (awards discussion) dezeen.com IALD — iald.org NeoCon (trade show - upcoming lighting vignettes) neocon.com Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 34: The Unregulated Profession: Why Lighting Design Needs Licensing Now
May 1900:58:49Tap to summarizeWhy does the profession that shapes how humans experience every built space they occupy still have no regulatory recognition — anywhere in the world?Dawn Brown, CLD, Design IALD, Lighting Designer at Ontario Aesthetic Lighting Design (OALD), joins Avi and Lisa for a direct look at the future of the profession. The conversation covers the persistent divide between interior designers and lighting designers, Dawn's proposal to regulate lighting design in Ontario, and the science case for circadian and wellness lighting. "If we know there's something we can do to prevent harm, why not just do it?" Engineering addresses the conscious mind. Lighting design influences the subconscious. That distinction, Dawn argues, is why professional recognition is long overdue. In This Episode: (00:00) Dawn Brown's path from architecture to lighting design (09:05) Interior designers and the lighting design disconnect (14:29) Engineering serves the conscious mind, design serves the subconscious (20:49) Proposing lighting design regulation to Ontario's Parliament (27:39) IES recommended practices, professional liability, and malpractice (38:10) Why CLDs must lead wellness and circadian design (42:28) Circadian lighting adoption: barriers and the next generation (50:03) Reaching interior designers and elevating the profession (56:01) The boardroom moment that made Dawn a lighting designer Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources:Dawn Brown LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dawn-brown-cld-design-iald-03404aa9/Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 33: Profit Leaking Out the Floor: Inside Lighting's Broken Spec Process
May 101:01:43Tap to summarizeLighting's go-to-market model is one of the most complex in any product category. Does anyone outside the industry actually understand that—and does it matter if they don't?Amy Bonder came to Luminii from the Fortune 500—Black & Decker, Advance Auto Parts, Bridgestone—and found that nothing prepares you for lighting's go-to-market complexity. In this episode, hosts Avi Mor (Morlights) and Lisa Reed (Reed Burkett Lighting Design) dig into what's broken. One agent partner touched a single project 178 times. The conversation moves through data fragmentation, spec integrity, and a harder question: why does this industry still fail to develop its own leaders? "Better is better," Amy says. Take the nuggets and move. In This Episode: (00:00) Amy Bonder's path from Fortune 500 to the lighting industry (06:55) Why lighting's go-to-market model is unlike anything else (14:24) The real cost of a fragmented specification process (23:53) Solving the data and software gap across the value chain (32:50) Spec integrity and the lighting designer's role in reducing friction (37:31) Personal branding and leadership development for design firms (44:08) Feedback as a leadership tool: building stronger teams (50:26) The business fundamentals design school never teaches (55:15) Interns, AI, and developing the next generation Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources:Amy Bonder LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-bonder-3b23b47/ Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 32: Ron Unterreiner on Cash Flow, Minority Contractors, and the 90-Day Problem
Apr 1401:02:26Tap to summarizeWhat if the fastest way to bring a project in under budget was just to pay people on time?Ron Unterreiner—retired design-build executive, founder of the People networking initiative and WBEDC, and advisor to the Rise CDFI—joins hosts Avi Mor of Morlights and Lisa Reed of Reed Burkett Lighting Design for a direct conversation about what's quietly breaking the AEC payment chain. The discussion is anchored in three realities: 30-day payment terms aren't prompt, they're a slow disaster for small firms; minority and women-owned contractors are turning to predatory lenders at 82% interest to bridge the gap; and lighting design is a specification decision, not an optional add-on. "There is no such thing as cash flow anymore," Ron says flatly. "It does not flow." So who has the power to change it—and why aren't they? In This Episode: (00:00) Ron Unterreiner on 32 years in design-build and minority contractor equity work (08:24) How design and construction disciplines communicate—and where lighting fits in (11:21) Who actually controls which fixtures end up on a job site (18:59) The 90-day payment gap bankrupting AEC's smallest firms (25:27) Why large firms absorb slow payment while small firms can't survive it (32:10) What prompt payment actually looks like: lessons from HBE Corporation (38:13) Industry organizations, antitrust fears, and stalled collective action (43:05) The financial case owners aren't hearing: prompt payment costs less (50:52) Prioritizing clients who pay: a survival strategy for small design firms (51:46) Ron's defining lighting experience: Pope John XXIII at St. Peter's Basilica (57:39) Lighting design as a specification decision, not a budget line to eliminate Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources: Ron Unterreiner: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ron-unterreiner-49a549184/ IALD (International Association of Lighting Designers): https://www.iald.orgLighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 31: From Frustration to Strategy: Lighting Perception, Neocon, and What Comes Next
Mar 3100:23:58Tap to summarizeStructural engineers are licensed. Architects are licensed. Why isn't lighting?Hosts Avi Mor of Morlights and Lisa Reed of Reed Burkett Lighting Design go unscripted. It starts with a hotel ballroom running 20 footcandles at a dinner event, broken dimmers, and no one who knew how to operate them. From that comes a pointed question: why is proper lighting still treated as a luxury? The specification market sits at roughly 3–5% of total luminaires sold in the U.S. Lisa and Avi dig into licensure, the IES partnership with America by Design, and whether Neocon's Illuminated show can move that number. In This Episode: (00:00) Season preview and upcoming guest lineup (06:18) Hotel ballroom lighting failure and the luxury perception problem (12:04) Neocon's Illuminated show: lighting in front of 50,000 designers (17:41) When lighting work becomes how you see everything (21:03) KU Campanile project and plans for the season ahead Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources:IES (Illuminating Engineering Society): https://www.ies.org Neocon / Illuminated: https://www.neocon.com The Merchandise Mart, Chicago: https://www.themart.com IALD (International Association of Lighting Designers): https://www.iald.orgLighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 30: Ten Designers, Three Questions, One Profession
Mar 1700:33:12Tap to summarizeTen experienced lighting designers walk into a conference. Can they agree on what they actually do for a living?"What do you do?" For lighting designers, it's a deceptively hard question to answer well. At the IALD Enlighten Americas 2025 conference in Tucson, hosts Avraham Mor (Morlights) and Lisa Reed (Reed Burkett Lighting Design) posed three pointed questions to ten industry veterans — Chip Israel (Lighting Design Alliance, A Salas O'Brien Company)Aram Ebben (EXP) Francesca Bastianini (Sighte Studio) Ron Kurtz (Dark Light Design) Randy Burkett (RBLD) Giulio Pedota (Schuler Shook) Steven Rosen (Available Light) Laura Arroyo (FLOU Lighting Design) Gonzalo Saez (SV Lighting Design)Nancy Clanton (Clanton & Associates)The conversation cuts to the core of professional identity, the real distinction from electrical contractors, and whether a unified global vocabulary for the profession is even achievable. Then ChatGPT weighs in — sort of. In This Episode: (00:00) Welcome and IALD Enlighten Americas 2025 conference recap (06:47) How do you describe lighting design to a non-technical audience? (10:48) Lighting designer vs. electrical contractor: where expertise diverges (14:31) Can the profession agree on a shared vocabulary? (20:44) ChatGPT synthesizes responses from eight designers (26:30) Debating the definition — and who it actually needs to reach Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources:IALD: https://iald.org/Conferences/EA25Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 29: David Woody on Lighting in Storytelling
Feb 300:59:11Tap to summarizeHow does lighting affect how we tell stories? Avraham Mor of Morlights and Lisa Reed of Reed Burkett Lighting Design interview David Woody of the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry? They look at how storytelling is affected by lighting. How can we improve lighting and storytelling to have them intersect? The conversation reveals how much lighting can leave the imprint of a story on us, and how much it adds to the emotional connections we have with each other and to the stories we tell. In This Episode: · (00:00) Introduction to the Griffis Museum of Science and Industry · (03:16) David Woody’s Unique Role and Background · (09:24) The Intersection of Storytelling and Design · (12:27) The Importance of Lighting in Storytelling · (24:18) Celebrating Innovations and Addressing Challenges · (34:23) The Intersection of Storytelling and Experience · (37:42) Designing Emotional Connections in Spaces · (53:24) Future Innovations in Lighting Design · Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. · Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources: David Woody: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-woody-2713172 Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/ Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 28: Live at ArchLight: Taking the Stage and Taking a Stance
Jan 2100:43:12Tap to summarizeCan you quantify why lighting matters—or does defining it ruin everything? Avi Mor of Mor Lighting and Lisa Reed of Reed Burkett Lighting Design record live from ArchLight Summit 2025, exploring a fundamental question: does lighting matter? They tackle the industry's most pressing challenge—proving the value of professional lighting design in every project type. Why do affordable housing developments consistently exclude lighting designers despite their residents' critical need for quality light? The conversation reveals an uncomfortable truth: good lighting remains indefinable, immeasurable, yet undeniably essential. Their solution? Show the bad to prove the good. In This Episode: (00:00) Does lighting matter? Industry perspectives on value (10:06) Luminaire level lighting control without sensors (13:46) AI integration in lighting software and design tools (18:45) Where lighting design has the most impact (24:10) The challenge of proving lighting ROI in affordable housing (29:03) Why good lighting can't be quantified with metrics (36:26) Publishing lighting projects: what makes a compelling story (40:36) Limited budget museum design best practices Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources: ArchLight Summit: https://archlightsummit.com/ Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/ Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 27: ASID Chair David Euscher: Making the Case for Lighting Specialists
Dec 200:38:11Tap to summarizeWhat's the connection between lighting control systems, circadian rhythm, and designing for neurodivergent building occupants? David Euscher, national board chair for the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and interior designer based in Houston, discusses the critical relationship between interior design and lighting with hosts Lisa Reed of Reed Burkett Lighting Design and Avi Mor of Morelites. Can you really design a space without considering how light reveals it? The conversation explores professional licensure challenges, the 2014 friendship agreement between ASID, IES, and IALD, and strategies for bringing lighting professionals onto project teams early. Euscher shares compelling project stories, including work on Texas Children's Hospital where lighting designers fundamentally changed how dimensional spheres were illuminated. The discussion addresses human health standards, ASID's annual Trends Outlook Report, and why creating variety in lighting environments matters for both neurotypical and neurodivergent building occupants. (00:00) David Euscher's interior design career and role as ASID national board chair (05:56) Collaboration between ASID, IES, and IALD - the four visual design disciplines (13:41) Professional licensure and making the case for lighting specialists (22:27) Daylight automation, control systems, and human health standards (30:09) Project stories - Texas Children's Hospital and historic renovations (34:50) Favorite illuminated spaces - Nasher and Kimbell Art Museums Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources: David Euscher LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-euscher-asid-iida-ncidq-well-ap-01ba8b50/ Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/ Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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Episode 26: From Tax Credits to Design Excellence: Historic Preservation Lighting
Nov 1800:47:54Tap to summarizeWhat if value engineering meant distilling to essentials instead of cutting corners? Joel Fuoss, Principal at Trivers in St. Louis, joins hosts Lisa Reed of Reed Burkett Lighting Design and Avi Mor of Mor Lights to discuss adaptive reuse, historic tax credits, and collaborative design. How do you convince clients that lighting isn't optional? Fuoss explains how historic tax credits reduce costs by 40%, making specialty consultants financially viable. The conversation challenges traditional value engineering, reframing it as distillation to a project's essential mission rather than arbitrary cost-cutting. "We can design an incredible space...and then you turn the lights on, and it kills it," Fuoss warns. The discussion explores why architects need lighting designers as creative partners, not decorators, and how collaboration produces award-winning work like The Victor Building's recent AIA national housing award. In This Episode: (00:00) Joel's adaptive reuse architecture (04:10) Victor Building wins national AIA award (07:05) Historic tax credits enable design quality (12:47) Redefining value engineering as distillation (18:42) How poor lighting destroys architecture (26:11) Collaboration replaces master architect model (32:18) Architects as conductors of design orchestra (40:36) Favorite spaces lit through trees Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us. Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes! About the show: Lighting Matters is hosted by Lisa Reed and Avi Mor. In each episode, we’ll dig deep into the meticulous process of creating lighting design for architecture, showcasing industry leaders who balance artistic creativity with technical precision, and listen as they share their successes and challenges in architectural lighting design. Resources: Joel Fuoss LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joel-fuoss-aia-leed-ap-a1121b4/ Trivers Lighting: https://www.triverslighting.com/ Lighting Matters Podcast LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighting-matters-podcast/ Lighting Matters Podcast YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLkEKnB8XgSXoeDY0T8t3w Lisa Reed https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-j-reed-b198154/ Reed Burkett Lighting Design http://www.rbldi.com Avraham Mor https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrahammor/ Morlights https://www.morlights.com/
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