Your Interview Olivia Galang

Introduce yourself (name, company, position, country) and tell us how you got into lighting design (including education/qualifications).

My name is Olivia Galang, and I’m a lighting design student and emerging professional based in Toronto, Canada. I have currently completed my Bachelor's of Architecture at the University of Toronto, with minors in Environmental Studies and Visual Studies. 

I first became interested in lighting by studying architecture and art. I’ve always been interested in how light can shape the personality and emotion of a space through art. That curiosity then grew into taking dedicated lighting courses where I explored different lighting avenues and fundamentals like photometry, AGI32, daylighting, calculations, and circadian lighting. My work tends to blend technical lighting through my knowledge of software with a strong foundation in design, materiality and visual culture. 

Tell us about your work – is there a specific type of project you like to work on or an area you specialise in and why?

Since I’m still a student, my work is typically very creative, so I love working on projects where light acts as both a functional tool and a narrative element. Because of my background in architecture, visual arts, and environmental studies. I typically gravitate towards installation work, conceptual lighting, and photography since they can incorporate all elements that interest me, but with a strong emphasis on lighting. I’m especially interested in how lighting affects human experience, ecology, and the mood of a space. Projects that let me merge creativity with technical problem-solving are my favourite.

What project are you most proud of and why?

The project I’m most proud of is my two-part sensory installation, A World Without Us / A World With Us. It explores the relationship between untouched nature and the environment we’ve created today, using light, sound, smell, and materiality to immerse the viewer in both worlds.

In A World Without Us, I recreated a prehistoric, pre-human environment by projecting colour sequences of ancient organisms through water onto layers of tulle shaped like their forms. A sunset lamp acted as the cycle of natural light, while subtle vibrational audio and research-based scent components built a world that felt calm, unfamiliar, and undisturbed. Light became a narrative tool here, something gentle, atmospheric, and tied to natural rhythms.

In contrast, A World With Us confronts the impact of human activity. Glitched advertisements, broken mirrors, and real Toronto garbage create a chaotic space washed in harsh blue fluorescent light, representing our obsession with extending productivity beyond the sun’s cycle. Distorted natural audio overpowered by city noise and artificial smells pushes visitors into sensory overload. Charred footprints guide them directly through the installation, making them physically confront the world we’ve shaped.

I’m proud of this project because it was the first time I blended lighting design, environmental storytelling, and multisensory experience into one cohesive narrative. It challenged me to think about how light shapes emotion and perception, and how different lighting conditions, natural, artificial, distorted, carry meaning. The project reflects my values as a designer: thoughtful, research-driven, and focused on the relationship between people, ecology, and the environments we create.

What is the biggest challenge that you have overcome in your career?

One of the biggest challenges has been transitioning from general architecture to a specialized field like lighting. Lighting requires both an artistic sensitivity and a strong technical understanding, from photometry to glare metrics to fixture performance. Building that skill set took initiative, self-study, and taking on projects outside my comfort zone. I was also very intimidated by meeting people in the industry by being such a new person to lighting as a student. I’ve been able to overcome that and meet such amazing people in the industry. Pushing through that challenge taught me confidence, adaptability, and how much I truly enjoy lighting design.

How does light inspire you?

Light inspires me because it’s both scientific and emotional. You can quantify it with numbers, but it can also completely change how a person feels in a space. I’m inspired by its ability to tell stories, guide people, and reveal the character of materials and environments. So many different aspects of lighting keeps me constantly wanting to know more because the possibilities are still so endless as more people learn about it. Light is subtle, powerful, and endlessly creative; that duality is what motivates my work.

What is your message for other Women In Lighting?

My message would be: meet as many people as you can because light is so much more expansive than you think. Even people who have been in the industry for years still acquire new information all the time about what people are able to do with both creativity and technology. Whether you come from engineering, architecture, art, or something completely different, your background adds value.