ABOUT LOOP LIGHTING

In 2015, Alina, John and Ryoko formed LOOP Lighting. Together they are excited to create innovative solutions for the next generation of lighting.

Alina Ainza

Alina has worked in architectural lighting design for nearly two decades. With a background rooted in design and the fine arts, she is passionate about exploring the human connection to light and sensitively layering a variety of lighting qualities — hard light and shadows, general illumination and focal light — to create spaces that are visually interesting and feel dynamic. While collaborating with numerous New York City-based architectural designers, artists and lighting manufacturers on a diverse array of interior and exterior global lighting projects, her work has garnered four Illuminating Engineering Society Lumen Awards. She has also been published in Interior Design. Alina is a LEED Accredited Professional and strives to integrate energy efficiency in the studio’s daily practice. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interior Design from the University of Florida.

John Newman

John brings his passion for product development and integration of the latest lighting technology to every project. Drawing from his experience on a wide variety of project types, both domestic and international, he seeks to create a synergy with other designers in product design and architecture and explore how light can be used to illuminate and inspire. He draws his inspiration from film, art and photography and has deep appreciation for how different media capture light to define a feeling or mood. He enjoys creating visual vignettes within his work and helping clients create experiential spaces that integrate lighting into the architecture in a way that feels most appropriate for the aesthetic. Graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in International Business from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, he began an apprenticeship in lighting design in Washington D.C. After relocating to New York, John studied at Parsons, The New School of Design where he obtained an MA in Architectural Lighting Design in 2001. John is an Adjunct Professor of Lighting Design at both The School of Visual Arts BFA Interior Design program, as well as Graduate Studies Program in Exhibition Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology. John’s work has been published in Metropolis, Esquire and Architectural Lighting.

Ryoko Nakamura

Ryoko studied Fine Arts at Musashino Art University in Tokyo and Lycée Jeanne D’arc in France. Her foray in lighting began in Japan, working for a German lighting manufacturer where she designed lighting for museum projects. Her love for design and the arts naturally led her to New York City. During her 9-year career in New York, she worked on such notable projects as the Sterling Memorial Library at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. She has worked on diverse projects ranging from academic, retail, commercial, art galleries, museums and residential spaces. She also has extensive experience with restoration projects and crafting solutions that respect a building’s architectural history while bringing the space to life again through seamless integration modern light technologies. Ryoko draws her inspiration from the natural environment and seeks to apply the organic and sculptural qualities of light to create built environments that are both comfortable and inspiring. Ryoko brings a fresh perspective and sensitivity for the cultural as well as technical effects of light to every project. Under Ryoko’s leadership, LOOP recently established an office in Kyoto, Japan. Ryoko’s work has been recognized by the Illuminating Engineering Society with Lumen Awards and in LD+A and Architectural Digest magazines.