The recipient of the Anniversary Medal for Sustained Excellence in Lighting Design for Live Performance is Jennifer Tipton, who has been at the top of her profession for a number of years and engenders a philosophy and practice which has inspired generations of theatre makers, especially in the world of contemporary dance, says the organisation.
Chair of the ALD, lighting designer PeterMumford, gave his view of her work. "When I first came across the work of Jennifer Tipton, it was at a time when there were not so many lighting designers in the world and the art form was relatively new and unrecognised compared to nowadays. I always used to say that she was the one designer whose work I could understand in terms of its intelligence and intention quite apart from its beauty.
"She is and has been for several decades, a leader in the field, an innovator and a huge influence on the art of lighting. Not only a great designer but a wonderful teacher too, able to explain and justify the thought processes behind her work, hence the decision to honour her in this fiftieth year of the ALD. We have all been influenced by Jennifer's work and this opportunity to attend these lectures /workshops with her here in the UK is a rare one and I strongly recommend the experience to everybody with any interest in lighting design."
Tipton's distinguished career includes many Tony Awards for winning Broadway designs, as well as long term creative relationships with American Ballet Theatre, Paul Taylor Dance Company, and choreographers: Jerome Robbins, Twyla Tharp, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Dana Rice and Shen Wei.
As Adjunct Professor of Design at the Yale School of Drama since1981, Jennifer has trained many of the top lighting designers working around the world today, and continues to inspire respect and admiration amongst the emerging generation of theatre makers.
As part of the 50th anniversary the ALD willbe holding a series of events in the highly esteemed Embassy Theatre located within Central School of Speech &Drama, University of London.
"Central School is enormously proud to host this event on behalf of the ALD. We are very pleased to help the ALD celebrate the work of Jennifer Tipton; as a practitioner and as a teacher, and to provide a venue for UK based practitioners to benefit from her great wealth of knowledge experience." says Nick Moran who leads the lighting programmes at Central School.
Events during the conference include a Master Class for students on Friday 13 January 2012, while on Saturday 14 January, there will be an open master class in lighting for dance - aimed at lighting and dance practitioners, as well as the presentation of the Medal to Jennifer Tipton, which will also accommodate a panel discussion on Light for Dance featuring top lighting and dance practitioners in conversation with Jennifer.
(Jim Evans)
