This article originally featured in Luxe magazine.
Todd Walling has a love of mid-century modern design, while his business partner, Troy Dunnington, is a self-professed tech geek. With Lightworks, the San Diego duo brings their respective interests and backgrounds —as a lighting designer and an electrical contractor—to all-in-one systems for custom lighting, shading and audio/visual needs. They might assist with illuminating an art collection, using shades to maximize ocean views, or easily transition a space from home office to home theater—all with a central control panel. “We’re basically a one-stop shop.” Walling says.
Early on in their careers, “we’d get to a job, and the client would have six different people working on the electrical components, and those six people didn’t talk to each other,” he recalls. “It was frustrating.” Lightworks’ approach “allows us to talk our clients through every aspect of a project and really get to know what they want,” explains Dunnington. Says Walling. “Function used to rule in lighting design. but now emotion is more important—and I want our clients to experience our work.”
“We’re not reinventing the wheel,” says Lightworks’ Todd Walling, of the highly customized architectural lighting programs designed by him and his partner, Troy Dunnington. “We’re making its use more convenient and seamless.” The designers’ masterful touch is seen in the backlighted agate stone countertops and recessed television in a Solana Beach condo.
