Lesley Wheel (1929–2004) was an American architectural lighting designer and one of the pioneers of architectural lighting design.[1] Wheel graduated from Bryn Mawr College[2] and was trained in theater lighting and production, working under Jean Rosenthal at the New York City Ballet before moving into architectural lighting design and co-founding the firm Wheel-Garon Inc.  She was one of the first women to practice architectural lighting design full-time.[3] Her work focused primarily on hotel and hospitality design, and she was known for her skill in creating warmth and intimacy through light.[3]

Wheel was a founding member and past president of the International Association of Lighting Designers and the first person to receive its Lifetime Achievement Award. She was a founding member and past director of the Nuckolls Fund for Lighting Education and a former director of the Lighting Research Institute.[3] After her death, the Nuckolls Fund established an annual grant in her name for an introductory lighting program at a college or a university.[4]

Notable projects

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Notable awards

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  • Designers Lighting Forum Honor Award (1979)[1]
  • Reader's Choice award from Architectural Lighting Magazine (1990)[1]
  • IALD Lifetime Achievement Award (1999)[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Wheel, In Memory". Architect Magazine. March 8, 2007. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  2. ^ "Paid Notice: Deaths WHEEL, LESLEY". The New York Times. 2004-04-08. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  3. ^ a b c d Tamulonis, Phil (March 8, 2007). "2001 Hall of fame: Lesley Wheel". Architect Magazine. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  4. ^ "Lesley Wheel Grant". The Nuckolls Fund for Lighting Education. Retrieved 2023-08-17.