Published on December 21, 2025 by Rodrigo Barbosa
Lyon Creative Lighting Forum 2025 Part 2 - Morning Presentations and Q&A
Playful Dialogue: Planning for Joy, Equity, and Engagement - Sebnem Gemalmaz, Associate – ARUP
This session explores how lighting masterplans can embed inclusivity by transforming lighting into permanent urban planning layers for play and social connection. Building on research into the social impact of lighting interventions for vulnerable groups, particularly children, it demonstrates how playful lighting acts as a universal language to foster communication, equity, and a sense of belonging in nighttime environments.
Light Sketching: a playful approach to participatory design - Philip Ross, Owner – Studio Philip Ross
Philip Ross presents the evolution of a playful approach to involve residents in designing lighting for ‘their’ public space, called Light Sketching. The presentation shows how it started as an explorative design research technique for Placemaking and how it developed into a fun and accessible participatory design tool that shaped the permanent lighting design for a community park.
Smile, it’s just light! - Lionel Bessières and Carolina Scorsone, Lighting designers – Quartiers Lumières and Association des Concepteurs Lumière et Eclairagistes
What happens when urban lighting meets humour and people? Through spontaneous street interviews and real reactions, this talk explores how people from all walks of life perceive light in public spaces — with curiosity, irony, emotion, or laughter. Beyond the technical and aesthetic dimensions of lighting design, “Smile, it’s just light!” invites us to see light as a social and cultural connector, a subtle spark that reveals the diversity of our cities and the mood of those who inhabit them. A journey between seriousness and playfulness, where lampposts, words, and smiles shed new light on the everyday.
Panel discussion and Q&A
Moderator: Jasmine van der Pol, LUCI Senior Programme Manager