Lighting designer/inventor, Tony Gottelier died at age 64 at his home in England last Sunday. As a principal in the firm, Wynne Willson Gottelier, and with his partner, Peter Wynne Willson, he was responsible for many innovations in the lighting field.
Rick Fisher, president of the UK Association of Lighting Designers, wrote the following:
"Tony was a great member of the lighting community. A true innovator and a wonderful insightful observer of the industry. His columns in LSI were always interesting and often said the things that we were thinking.
"He worked at developing new products for our industry and was keenly intersted in supporting the work of other innovators, often as a judge of new products at PLASA and LDI.
"One of his many lasting legacies is his brainchild -- Light Relief. He started this campaign after seeing first hand how a freelance designer's life could be turned upside down by the unforseen circumstances especially illness ( to which he was no stranger). This eventually resulted in the formation of Light Relief a registered charity specifically set up to provide assistance to those in the lighting profession to help ease hardship. This has been replicated in the US by the ESTA Foundation's sponsored charity, Behind the Scenes.
"We have lost a true friend and colleague with his passing."