Introduction to EALD

I’m Evelyn Audet, and I started my career as an interior designer, and I loved it. Early on in my career, I realized there was so much to the built environment that I knew that I would never know everything about everything - carpet, flooring, solid surfaces, paint, wall coverings, fabrics, furniture, art, trim, lighting, light fixtures, window treatments, windows, doors, cabinetry, shades, etc.

Having said that, I also realized that I wanted to specialize in something, but at that early stage, I did not know exactly what. Then, a couple (or three) recessions ago, I was hired as a lighting designer working out of a pretty fabulous lighting showroom. My boss and I introduced lighting design to the Rhode Island residential market. We really did! We went to properties that were under construction; at that time, many developments were being built. We introduced ourselves to the general contractor and offered to layout the lighting for the house and provide a bill-of-materials. Quickly, our reputation spread, and we suddenly had a full-fledged lighting design department… well, that was me.

I then began training at lighting manufacturers around the country. I learned about legacy lamps, what light did, how to apply light, how the products were made, and how the lighting equipment got the light out of the product.

When a lighting designer talks about light, we are talking about the experience of light, not necessarily decorative lighting fixtures.

When a lighting designer talks about light, we are talking about the experience of light, not necessarily decorative lighting fixtures. I call my tools ‘lighting equipment’.

This is what a lighting designer does… we learn about light, how it behaves, what it does to humans, and the built environment. We then know when and where to apply the equipment to light a space to affect human behavior. Light has a profound effect on human beings.

I have now been designing with light and lighting control for 35 years. January 2024 is my 29th year having my business, Evelyn Audet Lighting Design.

Lighting is technical, it is a science, it is creative, it is atmosphere and mood. It is excitement and relaxation. It is safety and awe.

I am an artist and my medium is light. I am a technician with the knowledge of what equipment will produce the desired outcome of my creation, and I am a passionate and experienced educator sharing the knowledge I have about light… something we all pay for every month, yet few of us know anything about.

Light enhances the architecture, interior design, landscape, and occupants as no other medium can.