Lila Eliora Cicurel

I was drawn to the visual arts early in my life, in part as a vehicle to communicate my thoughts and feelings. Words were not my friends in my earlier days, neither speaking nor writing, but I found a true voice in visual art and design. A brush stroke, a color choice, or a carefully placed shadow can all speak for me.

The arc of my studies led me to the intersection of art and technology, which introduced me to a community of engineers and technical specialists who are themselves not usually known for their communications skills. I found common ground, and discovered an ability to collaborate with people across many disciplines and many personality types. I have experienced some wonderful cross-discipline collaborations.

One thing I took from those collaborations, together with skills in a variety of critical technologies, was an appreciation for project structure, goal orientation, and task focus. The technical community approaches its work in a structured manner often not associated with the art world. I relished that philosophy, and developed a strong get-it-done approach to my work. I also developed an appreciation for some of the more technical aspects of my art. Work in digital media led to exploration of fully immersive virtual worlds. And in parallel I became engaged in physical-world installation design and creation.

One thread flows through all those areas. Through my years of education and experience in these varying forms of design and art, I have been driven by one key thing: the role shadows play in setting the mood and tone, and how lighting fosters an emotional connection to the participant in my work. Whether it is a painting, virtual world, physical space, or a natural landscape my work always grows from how I can employ light to elicit emotions. I’ve come to realize that light itself is the medium that excites me most.

And so, this is where I wish to choose to pursue my career: in the design and realization of lighting for both the physical and virtual worlds. I’ve gained a deep appreciation for the discipline and art of lighting design, and I am eager to become a part of that community.