Maida Hot

Managing Director

MSc Light & Lighting, MA BSc. CEng MCIBSE, MSLL, Associate IALD

Maida has worked in the Lighting industry for over 30 years. She has completed numerous high-profile and award-winning projects in the UK and overseas across various industry sectors, including master planning and regeneration, commercial, luxury residential, retail, hotels, education, arts, heritage, ecclesiastical and public buildings. Her creative design experience extensively covers both daylight and architectural lighting design. Having both science and architecture related degrees established her open thinking and innovation paths in the lighting design of her projects. Her initial multi-disciplinary training in the built environment gave invaluable insights into the work of other consultants which is vital to our close working relations with other practices in the design and construction industry.

Maida often gives presentations at professional conferences and lectures at highly acclaimed schools of architecture such as the Bartlett School of Architecture at UCL, University of Nottingham, Glasgow School of Art and Madrid Polytechnic. She also contributes to the work of professional lighting organisations, for example, by chairing the IALD committee that set up now very successful International Enlighten annual conference and participating in SLL committee work.

Keith Miller

Director

BA (Hons), MSLL, Associate IALD

Keith has over 38 years’ experience in architectural lighting design. He gained his initial project experience in the design departments of leading architectural lighting manufacturers after graduating from Kingston University with a degree in furniture and related product design.

Keith has worked as a lighting consultant since 1985 in renowned design practices who were pioneers of then nascent profession of lighting design in the UK. He is now widely considered a design expert in lighting industry. His notable major completed projects both in the UK and internationally include hotels, offices, historic buildings, public realm projects, restaurants, exhibitions, residential projects, lighting masterplans and environmental impact assessments.

Keith is a member of the Society of Light & Lighting Technical & Publications Committee. In 2001, he was a member of the task group responsible for SLL LG11 “Surface Colour & Reflectance”. He was the task group chair and principal author of SLL LG15 “Transport Buildings” 2017. Keith was also one of the principal contributors to the SLL “Lighting Handbook” in 2018 and is currently participating in the preparation of several new lighting design guides.

Philip Avery

Project Director

BA (Hons), Affiliate CIBSE, Associate IALD

After graduating with a degree in Product & Furniture Design at Kingston University, Philip had four years of experience as a lighting designer working for a leading luminaire manufacturer before developing his career in independent lighting design consultancy.

Philip joined Equation in 2013. He has worked on a diverse range of projects and has extensive experience in commercial, mixed-use residential, healthcare, hospitality, building facade, landscape and urban regeneration projects.

Philip has a keen eye for detail and particularly enjoys applying his product design skills to the development of custom luminaires when projects require site-specific solutions. He strives to keep abreast of rapidly advancing technological developments in the luminaire market, sharing his knowledge with the design team to ensure that Equation remains a leader in innovative lighting design. Philip’s passion for the well-considered and appropriate application of architectural lighting to building facades led to him becoming a finalist in the SLL ‘Young Lighter of the Year Award 2013’ and winning the Institution of Lighting Professionals’ award for ‘Best Written Paper’. He has been an Associate Member of IALD since 2013.

Beatrice Bertolini

Project Director

BSc (Hons), MSc Architecture, MSc Architectural Lighting Design, Associate IALD

Beatrice studied at the Politecnico di Milano, where she received both a Bachelor’s degree and Master’s degree in Architecture. Her passion for architectural lighting began when she moved to Gent as part of an exchange program. Beatrice became fascinated with the spectacle of lighting in city festivals, temporary installations and performances.

In 2015, she took her first steps into lighting design working for an independent lighting design practice in Milan. Attracted by the unique natural lighting conditions in Scandinavia, Beatrice then moved to Stockholm to attend the Master of Science in Architectural Lighting Design at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. Her studies were influenced by the social impact of lighting in outdoor public spaces. Beatrice was involved in a number of urban regeneration projects, creating temporary lighting installations during her academic studies in Sweden.

Beatrice joined Equation, following the completion of her master’s degree. She has been an Associate IALD member since 2018 and is currently IALD UK Chapter coordinator.

Aniket Gore

Project Director

BArch, MA (Lighting design)

Aniket has over 20 years of experience in professional lighting design, delivering a number of award-winning projects in collaboration with internationally renowned architects. Before specialising in lighting design, Aniket trained and practiced as an architect for more than three years. It was during this time that he experienced first-hand the profound impact lighting can have on architecture, sparking a passion that led him to pursue a Master’s degree in Architectural Lighting Design at Hochschule Wismar, Germany.

Aniket has worked with leading lighting design studios in Germany and Switzerland before settling in London in 2008. His career spans a wide range of iconic UK and international projects, including cultural buildings, airports, commercial towers, and luxury hospitality developments. 

He was awarded Young Lighter of the Year 2009 – Best Written Paper for his paper on the Lantern Effect.

Lighting, for Aniket, is an essential and powerful medium to enhance architectural narrative and spatial experience. His architectural background, combined with strong technical expertise, enables him to seamlessly integrate lighting into the architect’s vision, enriching both form and function.

Elena Poles

Senior Designer

BDes, Interior Design

Elena studied interior design at Politecnico di Milano, with her passion in architectural lighting initiated by an internship in the interior and lighting design practice based in Indonesia. Over the two year period with the company she was involved in bespoke high-end hospitality projects worldwide.

Upon return to Europe, she joined London-based architectural lighting consultancy working on a plethora of projects, including hospitality, commercial, residential, retail, landscape and urban designs, progressing to the senior level.

After a couple of years in media industry, Elena has returned to the lighting practice focusing on large scale Middle eastern projects, with emphasis on user experience, media and biophilic lighting design for stadia and outdoor public venues. Elena joined Equation to pursue her interest for refined high-end architectural lighting design. She has an extended interest in product development and works closely with project teams to create highly tailored lighting solutions for each client. She continues to bring together her media, entertainment and technical knowledge to deliver captivating designs.

Alejandro Lizarralde

Project Designer

BBA, B.Des, MSc Architectural Lighting Design

Alejandro graduated from Andes University in Bogota with a double major in Business and Design. His interest in lighting began when he visited different museums and discovered light art and immersive experiences through light that changed the perception of space and the human behaviour around it. Alejandro first worked in Columbia on lighting for public projects and also for commercial sector. Pursuing his interest, Alejandro completed the architectural lighting design master degree course at KTH in Stockholm, Sweden.

With his research thesis for MSc, Alejandro created a piece that was one of the winners of the 2022 Immersive Arts for Health Student Design Competition organized by the Jefferson Centre of Immersive arts for health. The project is research-based on the study of light and perception into creating changes in the psychophysiological behaviour of humans to enhance the experience in waiting rooms in hospitals.

Dhara Mansata

Project Designer

B.Des, MA Product and Furniture Design.

After completion of her bachelor degree in product design, Dhara worked in lighting design studio Arjun Rathi Design in India where she designed unique luminaires for a number of commercial, residential and landscape architectural projects. This involvement cemented Dhara’s great interest in lighting design. For the following couple of years, she worked for a non-profit organization helping on enriching crafts and craftsmen of India as a lead product designer in furniture and lighting design. She also curated exhibitions and workshops to promote the crafts of India giving her an insights of how art and design can transform people’s lives.

Before joining Equation in 2022, she completed her Master’s degree in Product and Furniture design at Kingston University. Dhara also has a great interest in photography, art and crafts, and interactive design.

Panos Stamidis

Project Designer

MSc Lighting Design

During his Interior Design course Panos became first interested in the impactful role of lighting in architecture. Motivated by the vast possibilities, he decided to pursue an MSc in Lighting Design at Aalborg University in Copenhagen. Throughout and post his academic studies, Panos explored lighting design from diverse perspectives, always with a focus on human experience of light. 

His early career involved working on installations and exhibition lighting of several museums in Copenhagen. Driven by his interest in combining art and lighting, Panos directed his master’s thesis towards the exploration of enhancing the visitor experience by creating a dynamic lighting system for sculptures in museums. Before joining Equation, Panos worked for a lighting design studio in Athens and contributed to a variety of architectural projects. 

His multifaceted experience, blending academic knowledge and practical skills, positions him in Equation team with a profound understanding of lighting design, coupled with a passion for creating human-centric and visually impactful experiences.

Alex Hampshire

Project Designer

City & Guilds Level 3 NVQ, Electrotechnical Services
Level 4 BTEC, Lighting Design

Alex is a lighting designer with over 14 years of industry experience, and with project and leadership contributions to award-winning studios across architectural and arts-focused lighting disciplines.

Building upon his electrotechnical training, Alex pursued further education in architectural lighting design. His relevant project experience, gained via positions held in the UK, Australia and Europe, includes high-end hospitality, culture, retail, workplace, wellness and luxury residential.

His work in events and the visual experiences sector has led to collaborations with global brands and leaders in the arts, creative and technology industries. Alex led and coordinated product innovation research and development, as well as undertook independent studies that explore design methodology and computational applications in lighting design. At Equation, Alex continues to apply his ongoing research in progressive design practices and technological innovation to collaboratively deliver lighting solutions for various projects including major commercial buildings, events venues and public realm schemes.