Go and Glow: Four Filipino Projects Shine at 2025 LIT Lighting Design Awards

The lights are definitely on for Philippine lighting design.

Txanton Caviar Bar, Manami Resort, Kaway’an Ecopark, and Nova received category honors at the 2025 LIT Lighting Design Awards, one of the world’s most respected platforms for excellence in lighting design. The LIT Lighting Design Awards is organized by Switzerland-based Farmani Group, also behind noted award platforms IDA and the LUCIES. It celebrates work that balances creativity, technical mastery, and sensitivity to context, environment, and experience, with an esteemed international jury selecting winners that set benchmarks for lighting innovation and craft.

This year, Kaway’an Ecopark is the Philippines’ only double winner for 2025, taking both the Community Building Lighting and Exterior Architectural Illumination prizes for lighting design studio Visual Mastery (VIM). Light Plan Inc. and Christine Sicangco Lighting Design, Inc., each with a single award this year for Txanton Caviar Bar and Manami Resort, respectively, keep their cadence of accolades intact, having earned two awards apiece at last year’s LIT edition. The dainty wire-mesh folds of Nova, by industrial designer Joseph Rastrullo, catch jurors’ attention and mark the Philippines’ sole appearance in the lighting product design category.

The Philippines’ yearly wins at LIT from 2023 reveal its growing footprint in the global lighting design arena. A common thread among winning projects emerges: lighting that celebrates local design and culture, with a focus on craftsmanship and local materials.

The 2025 LIT Lighting Design Awards received over 1,000 entries from 62 countries. The task of selecting winners fell to a master jury of 30 lighting and design luminaries, including Florence Lam, Arup Fellow and Visiting Professor at The Bartlett UCL, Amit Gupta, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of STIR; Thiago Gaya, Publisher of L+D Magazine and Founder of LEDforum Brazil; and Mary Rushton-Beales, Principal at Lighting Design House in the UK.

Among this year’s overall category winners, light’s power to evoke emotion and remembrance was put to the fore. Architectural Lighting Design of the Year went to Memorial Brumadinho by Atiaîa Lighting Design, whose work commemorates the victims of a dam disaster in Minas Gerais through light and shadow. Studio JT’s Arc ZERO: Eclipse was named Entertainment Lighting Design of the Year for an immersive installation visible from the Seoul city skyline. Lighting Product Design of the Year went to Amphora by One to One by Martin Döller, inspired by ancient vessels for water and oil.

Congratulations to Light Plan Inc., Christine Sicangco Lighting Design, Visual Mastery, and Rastrullo. The complete list of winning projects is now available at litawards.com. Want to join next year’s edition? Scroll up to the end for a link to the mechanics.

LIT Lighting Design Awards 2025 Pinoy Winners

Project descriptors from LIT Awards have been edited for brevity

Light Plan Inc.
Txanton Caviar Bar, winner in Ambient Lighting

Photography by arteshotph

Located in Makati, one of Metro Manila’s renowned dining destinations, the Caviar Bar is a new addition to an already successful collection of concept restaurants. Recognizing the low ceiling height, the owner and designer envisioned an ultra-cozy, almost cave-like ambiance. They strategically used darkness to create a high-contrast, dramatic space.

The design began with studying colors, finishes, and functions within the space to determine proper illumination levels. With a fixed furniture layout, focused lighting was installed over dining tables, bars, and banquet seating. Oriental decorative lighting pieces were selected, complemented by integrated lighting that enhanced the pendants and table lamps.

A mirror ceiling replicates the space below. Mirrorized reflector compact downlights highlight carpets and tables. For the red draperies, 2200K color temperature was chosen to complement the deep tones. Vertical lighting softens dark interiors, blending drama with comfort.

The bar features illuminated bottles with individual controls and soft table lamps that flatter guests’ faces and drinks. LED technology with controls allows the ambiance to adapt throughout the day and across functions.

Christine Sicangco Lighting Design, Inc.
Manami Resort, winner in Hospitality Lighting Design

Photography by arteshotph

Manami Resort is the first and only five-star luxury resort in Sipalay, Negros Occidental, set amidst lush tropical foliage overlooking the Sulu Sea. Its architecture pays homage to Filipino culture while exuding understated global luxury.

The lighting design reinforces this duality. Decorative pendants and wall sconces were sourced locally, reflecting Filipino craftsmanship and cultural identity. Selections were guided by the owner, whose eye for interior design ensured that luminaires tell a story and complement the serene aesthetic.

Subtle architectural lighting enhances the natural finishes of wood, stone, and woven textures. Carefully placed indirect spotlights bring warmth and depth to materials, revealing tactile beauty without overpowering them. Landscape lighting extends the dialogue between indoors and outdoors. Pathways, trees, and gardens glow gently, dissolving boundaries between shelter and nature. The approach to the resort becomes a luminous journey, setting the tone for escape, rest, and renewal.

Visual Mastery (VIM)
Kaway’an Ecopark, winners for both Community Building Lighting and Exterior Architectural Illumination

Photography by Studio Synthesis

Lighting was embedded into the architectural narrative of the bamboo pavilion and its landscape, with each decision guided by the structure’s form, materiality, and rhythm. Warm uplighting at the base of the bamboo columns emphasizes vertical cadence, while soft grazing from discreet ceiling fixtures reveals the handcrafted roof’s texture and preserves shadow and depth. Recessed floor lights and concealed grazers along the bridge trace the path and canopy, mirrored in the water.

Lighting supports legibility, articulates structure, guides movement, and amplifies material honesty. The approach prioritizes perceptual efficiency over sheer intensity, using low-wattage, high-efficacy LEDs with integrated dimming. Fixtures were selected for circularity, featuring modular, serviceable designs that extend lifespan and reduce waste.

Joseph Rastrullo
Nova, Winner for Pendant Lighting

Nova is a hand-crafted ceiling light made from wire mesh, designed to evoke the brilliance of a stellar nova. Suspended overhead, it floats like a soft cloud or expanding starburst, offering both visual poetry and functional illumination.

The form is organic, asymmetrical, and subtly unique, reflecting the principles of wabi-sabi. Layers of mesh catch and scatter light, creating soft shadows and an ambient glow without the need for traditional diffusers. Despite its delicate appearance, Nova is built on a durable, lightweight wire frame and integrates high-efficiency LED lighting for sustainability and performance.

Made to order, Nova can be customized in size, density, and form, adapting to different ceiling heights and architectural contexts. Its recyclable wire mesh construction eliminates composite materials and diffusers, and energy-efficient LEDs minimize power consumption. Each piece is modular for repair or refitting, embodying a circular approach that balances aesthetics, function, and environmental responsibility.

Interested in showcasing your lighting design work at the next LIT Lighting Design Awards? Read the entry guide and FAQs for the 2026 competition here.  •