david k warfel
The final article in my series for Designing Lighting is out, and it is bittersweet to have wrapped up a year of writing for this industry publication. I'm excited for the next challenge (stay tuned, I have another series or two beginning in other publications soon), and grateful for the space and opportunity to write... Continue Reading →
This post is a continuation of my Don't/Do This: Primary Bedroom exploration. My Don't/Do This series are a lot of fun to sketch and imagine. Too much fun, perhaps, as the post on primary bedrooms has now ballooned into three. Without much forethought, I find myself creating an increasingly comprehensive series aimed at comparing and... Continue Reading →
If light itself is a gift, what kind of gift is it? Is it a new pair of socks, useful but not particularly exciting, or new electronics that are exciting now but will be obsolete in a few short years? Is light something handmade with love, with no monetary value but nonetheless priceless? Light, which... Continue Reading →
Of all the moments of discovery, connection, and understanding provided at LightFair this year, none stirred my emotions or challenged my thinking as deeply as the fifty minutes allotted to the Light + Justice conference session. Led by Edward Bartholomew, Mark Loeffler, and Lya S. Osborn, the presentation shook up my thinking and clarified my focus.... Continue Reading →
In the beginning… I occasionally begin conference presentations or lectures with a brief look at the historic importance of light to our ancestors. I might mention ancient Egyptian worship of the sun-god Ra, tell stories of Helios riding his chariot into the sky to start the day as a Greek Titan, or quoting “God is... Continue Reading →
Introducing three new blog series has gone on so long that I feel the year will be over before I get to write much helpful content. We'll see if I have the patience to stick this out, or if I end up reverting to more practical discussions.... As I push within shouting distance of fifty... Continue Reading →
I am very, very excited about my writing plans for this blog in the year ahead. The excitement for this coming year began more than twelve months ago when I set a plan for my 2022 posts. I thoroughly enjoyed blogging in 2022. For the first time, my writing was guided by a year-long plan... Continue Reading →
Is our binary view of the industry letting us off the hook? In an era of polarization, fundamentalism, and absolutist ideologies, it is easy for me to fall into statements like "builders install the cheapest lighting possible so they can maximize profits" or "interior designers think lighting means a trendy chandelier." But is the world... Continue Reading →
A few years ago I spent a rather silly amount of time buying and testing light bulbs from local retailers in the hopes of finding something I liked. I failed. I tried again in 2020 and found a few I liked and our team built a buying guide around them. Now that buying guide is... Continue Reading →
The first article in my series on residential lighting for Designing Lighting is out, and I am honored to be a part of this magazine! Getting the series together was not easy, however, and I have a long way to go before all six articles are complete. What makes this hard? Writing for a peer... Continue Reading →
the language of light 