2025 IESNYC Lumen Awards General Rules

1. Project Submission(s) must be completed by January 10, 2025

2. The Lumen Awards are open to any interior or exterior architectural lighting design projects completed within two years’ time of the submission deadline. Projects may be re-submitted during the years the projects are eligible.

3. Projects are judged anonymously. Therefore, the project summary and cued written image narratives must not include the name of the project, designer names or firms, manufacturer’s name, or branding of commercial products. A project’s location may be included in the submission narrative.

4. Identifying marks on digital images or optional video: The project name or company logo on digital images must be kept to a minimum or be discreet, and when possible, must be blurred or covered. Photographer’s name or copyright labels in images are not allowed. Descriptions or text in videos are allowed, but consider instead, including a “written video narrative” in the project summary or cued written image narrative.

5. It is the responsibility of the submitter to provide accurate information and obtain approval from the project owner, and authorization from the photographer/photo agency to submit the project for competition and publicity purposes.

6. The submitter shall acknowledge the images and/or videos submitted accurately and truthfully represent the lighting design as viewed in person and are not altered by physical fill light (i.e. strobes/flashes) or digital manipulation of the image/video to add or subtract sources of light or lighting fixtures. (Exception: Removal of illuminated exit signs is permitted.)

7. Award winners grant the IESNYC and Lumen Committee the rights to use narratives, images, and videos for competition and publicity purposes in all media.

8. Digital images, project summary, image narratives, and title of winning entries will be chosen or edited at the discretion of the judges. Overall presentation of winning projects for the Lumen Awards Gala may be edited or revised by the Lumen Committee. Whenever possible, the Committee will inform recipients of revisions.