Urban lighting authority Leni Schwendinger and IALD president Andrea Hartranft headline keynotes as ArchLIGHT Summit returns alongside Dallas Design Week and DALI Summit.
Dallas Market Center’s ArchLIGHT Summit is spotlighting a lineup of sessions and receptions from its 2026 show, returning September 15-16 with headline keynotes, panels, and receptions for the lighting, architecture, specification, and design communities.
This year’s show also runs alongside Dallas Design Week (September 15-17), the DALI Alliance’s North America Summit (September 16-17), and, for the first time, the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID)’s national GATHER: Catalyst conference (September 16-18), widening the pool of design and lighting professionals on campus that week.
“ArchLIGHT Summit continues to grow because of the incredible support of our exhibitors, rep agencies, sponsors, partners, and industry advocates,” said show director Lea Tranakos. “Together, they help us build an event that truly serves the lighting and design communities through practical education, product innovation, and collaboration so participants can see where our industry is headed.”
ArchLIGHT Summit’s educational programming opens with keynote speaker Leni Schwendinger, the internationally recognized urban lighting authority behind the NightSeeing™ nighttime design initiative, whose lighting work for landmarks includes New York’s Port Authority Bus Terminal and Times Square. Schwendinger will deliver a keynote blending data, humor, and dazzling visuals to offer a bold new perspective on city life from dusk to dawn.
ArchLIGHT Summit’s recurring networking series, Sip n’ Connect, pairs cocktails and connections on Tuesday afternoon with coffee on Wednesday morning, giving attendees two relaxed chances to unwind and network between sessions.
Closing the educational programming will be Andrea Hartranft, FIALD, principal of Hartranft Lighting Studios and past president of the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD). A recipient of the 2026 EdisonReport Lifetime Achievement Award and previously named Lighting Designer of the Year, Hartranft will pose the question “What If?” in a closing keynote exploring what the future of lighting might look like.
“ArchLIGHT Summit has always been about bringing people together, and Dallas Market Center is such a natural place to do that,” said C. Webster Marsh, director of education and programming for ArchLIGHT Summit. “We’re excited about the conversations that will happen in the sessions, on the show floor, and at the networking events throughout the two days. With DALI Summit and Dallas Design Week happening at the same time, there’s an added energy around the Market Center that makes this year’s event feel especially exciting.”
The 2026 educational program includes seven HSW-accredited sessions addressing topics ranging from recommended lighting levels and color rendering to historic preservation, outdoor controls, selectable lighting, and human health and wellbeing.
EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
A sampling of the sessions and receptions on this year’s calendar is below:
- WILD’s Welcome Party
Monday, September 14 | 5 p.m. | WAC Showroom – TM 3101
Women in Lighting + Design (WILD) welcomes everyone to Dallas with a pre-show reception featuring food, drinks, networking, and entertainment that’s open to all attendees, exhibitors, agents, and sponsors.
- Humanizing the Night: A Practical Vision for Safer, More Vibrant, Illuminated Cities — 1.0 LU
Tuesday, September 15 | 10 a.m. | TM 1 – Education Station
Speaker: Leni Schwendinger, urban lighting authority and founder of the NightSeeing™ nighttime design initiative
ArchLIGHT Summit’s opening keynote makes the case for nighttime lighting as a tool for urban safety and vibrancy, drawing on Schwendinger’s work on landmark projects including New York’s Port Authority Bus Terminal and Times Square.
- AI as a Lighting Designer’s Assistant: Practical Tools for Analysis, Comparison, and Clarity — 1.0 LU
Tuesday, September 15 | 11 a.m. | Education Station – TM 1
Speaker: Ardra Zinkon, CLD, IALD, president and director of lighting design, Zinkon Creative Studio
A practical look at how designers can put AI to work for analysis, comparison, and documentation while keeping creative control in human hands, including where the technology adds value and where it falls short.
- A Proposed Two-Parameter Approach to Recommended Lighting Levels — 1.0 LU|HSW
Tuesday, September 15 | 12 p.m. | Education Station – TM 1
Speaker: Craig Bernecker, Ph.D., FIES, LC
A challenge to conventional thinking on recommended light levels, proposing a two-parameter framework that designers can use to make more informed decisions about illuminance.
- LP-30: A Phase-by-Phase Approach to TM-30 — 1.5 LU|HSW
Tuesday, September 15 | 1 p.m. | Hudson Valley Lighting Group Showroom – TM 3902
Speaker: Jason Livingston, IES, IALD, LC, principal, Studio T+L, LLC
An introduction to ANSI/IES LP-30 and its phase-by-phase implementation of TM-30, showing how the standard’s Preference, Vividness, and Fidelity design intents can broaden color rendering goals across a project, followed by a live demonstration of light sources illustrating each intent.
- The Museum Multiverse — 1.0 LU
Tuesday, September 15 | 1 p.m. | Avenue Lighting Showroom – TM 3606
Panelists: Anita Jorgensen, IESNA, IALD, LEED, LC; Chuck Cameron; John Delfino, associate principal, Available Light, Inc.; Amy Nelson, manager of lighting design, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Designers share insights from world-class museum projects spanning historic houses to immersive environments, exploring the tension between compelling visitor experience and responsible stewardship of objects.
- Lighting to Support Human Health and Wellbeing — 1.0 LU|HSW
Wednesday, September 16 | 1 p.m. | Education Station – TM 1
Speaker: Mariana Figueiro, professor and director, Light and Health Research Center at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
This evidence-based session examines how the spectrum, timing, and duration of light affect the visual, perceptual, and circadian systems, offering practical strategies for designing spaces that support “bright days, dim evenings, dark nights.”
- Equitable by Design: Dynamic Lighting Systems for Neurodivergent Accessibility — 1.0 LU
Wednesday, September 16 | 2 p.m. | Education Station – TM 1
Speaker: John Delfino, associate principal, Available Light, Inc.
Using La Nubé STEAM Discovery Center, the first U.S. children’s museum with exhibit lighting that dynamically adjusts to the sensory needs of neurodivergent visitors, as a case study, this session explores how dynamic lighting and controls can advance accessible, equitable design.
- What Happens When the Race to the Bottom Is Over? The Evolution of Value — 1.0 LU
Wednesday, September 16 | 3 p.m. | Eurofase – TM 4002
Speaker: Andrea Hartranft, FIALD, principal, Hartranft Lighting Studios
Hosted in partnership with IALD Texas, ArchLIGHT Summit’s closing keynote invites attendees to consider what will differentiate lighting products once cost and efficiency are no longer the deciding factor.
- DALI Control the Night
Tuesday, September 15 | 6 p.m. | ArchLIGHT Summit Show Floor
Sponsored by the DALI Alliance, this evening of dinner, drinks, networking, entertainment, and lighting trivia is open to attendees of all Dallas Market Center events and kicks off the DALI Alliance’s North America Summit taking place onsite September 16-17.
- IALD Presents The Second Annual Last Call Y’all
Wednesday, September 16 | 4 p.m. | Eurofase Showroom – TM 4002
IALD Texas, in partnership with Eurofase, closes out ArchLIGHT Summit with a celebratory reception following the closing keynote.
SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
ArchLIGHT Summit 2026 partners include the DALI Alliance, Women in Lighting + Design (WILD), Oxygen Lighting, and the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD), joining participating Dallas Market Center showrooms in offering CEU sessions, receptions, hospitality events, and additional opportunities for connection throughout the show.
Returning sponsors and lighting rep agencies Architectural Lighting Alliance, Hossley Lighting & Power Solutions, Preferred Lighting Group, Texas Lighting Solutions, and SESCO connect attendees with manufacturers through dedicated pavilions and lounge spaces throughout the show.
Association partners for ArchLIGHT Summit include AIA Dallas, American Lighting Association, Association of Outdoor Lighting Professionals (AOLP), International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD), IALD Education Trust, IALD Texas, IES, IES Dallas, IIDA Texas Oklahoma chapter, International Landscape Lighting Institute, Light Justice, NACLIQ, NAILD, NAWIC, NEMRA Lighting, SARA, Texas Society of Architects, The Lighting Exchange, and Women in Lighting + Design (WILD).
ArchLIGHT Summit is proud to partner with leading industry media, including Inside Lighting, Bisnow, Designing Lighting, Edison Report, Light Directory, Commercial Construction & Renovation, Building Design + Construction, LightNOW, US Lighting Trends, National Lighting Bureau, Lighting Controls Academy, and Lighting Controls Podcast.
ArchLIGHT Summit supports the growth of the design/build industry and encourages student participation with complimentary admission to the event and its educational sessions for students pursuing careers in commercial lighting and design.
ALSO AT DALLAS MARKET CENTER
ArchLIGHT Summit’s September dates coincide with Dallas Market Center’s Gift & Home Market and KidsWorld, running September 15-17, giving attendees the opportunity to explore gift, home décor, and children’s product sourcing alongside the lighting and design programming.