Lighting in store windows always works best when nobody notices it.

Gene Moore, the iconic visual merchandiser at New York’s Bergdorf Goodman, Bonwit Teller and Tiffany’s for nearly 60 years, said, “Lighting is at least 50 percent of the success of a display, if not more,” but “people are generally not conscious of the lighting, they only know it is something bright and colorful that looks wonderful.”

Moore was not only a pioneer in making dramatic display windows tell a story, he was also a pathfinder in the use of lighting. In 1976, he was awarded the Lumen Award from the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA), the first time an award of this kind was awarded to a display artist.

To recognize lighting in window displays – and to honor Moore – Lighting Services Inc (Stony Point, N.Y.) has been presenting the LSI/Gene Moore Awards for the last 16 years, honoring “the talent, creativity and magic of display window designers and their ability to create a three dimensional art form [that] utilizes imaginative lighting, establishes store image and motivates buyers.” The competition is open to designers who use LSI’s products to feature and accentuate their retail window displays. The Grand Prize winner receives $2500, second place receives $1500 and the third-place winner receives $500.

This year’s Grand Prize winner, for work done in 2006, was James Ranson, associate director in charge of lighting for Saks Fifth Ave. (New York), for a “Madame Butterfly” window celebrating the opening of the Metropolitan Opera’s 2006 fall season. LSI provided 200 Series line voltage-PAR46 and 30 Series low voltage-PAR46 fixtures to the dramatically lit window, as well as pale lavender and medium blue color filters and spread lenses.

One judge noted, “This beautifully dramatic, themed display was really enhanced by light and color to evoke such an emotional feeling.”

Second place went to a veteran of these competitions, Lucy-Ann Bouwman of Sightgeist Design (Boston), for her work with the 211-year-old jeweler Shreve, Crump & Low. (Bouwman won second and third prize in last year’s competition for her work with Shreve, Crump.) This year, her “Eye Candy” jewelry display on Boylston Street turned the jeweler’s windows into candy land with the sweet hues of green, red and blush pink to highlight the fashion colors of summer and fall. LSI provided 216 Series low voltage-MR-16 fixtures and glass filters, including light pink, flesh pink and light green, to achieve these results.

Said a judge: “You can’t help but stare at this display. The color of the gumballs, the shape and color of the merchandise and the scale of the display – everything just works so well.”

Third place went to Tiffany & Co. – where, coincidentally, Moore did his most celebrated work, designing approximately 5000 windows in nearly 40 years from 1955 to 1994. The jeweler’s “Fall Harvest” display was designed by Robert Rufino, vp of creative services and visual merchandising. This display featured a showcase of gold jewelry by Paloma Picasso exclusively for Tiffany’s. Gilt harvest wheat, gold brocade fabric and bold, gold jewelry created a calm, elegant window rich in Thanksgiving abundance. LSI provided 36 Series low voltage-AR111fixtures and 280 Series line voltage-PAR30s as well as glass filters, including pink gold and bronze.

“Pure elegance!” enthused one of the judges. “The subtle richness of the warm tones overall in relation to the merchandise says beautiful/important/quality.”

Gene Moore would have approved.

Deadline for the 2007 competition is March 1, 2008. Downloadable entry forms can be found at www. lightingservicesinc.com/gene_moore.asp, or by contacting Lighting Services Inc at 800-999-9574. European entrants can contact the company, Lighting Services Inc (UK) Ltd, at +44 -118-953-3753, www. LightingServicesInc.co.uk.

Photography: Courtesy of Lighting Services Inc, Stony Point, N.Y.