Thanos Balafoutis

Dr. Thanos Balafoutis is an architect and lighting designer, graduated the School of Architecture of the University "Federico II" of Naples, Italy (gained a three-time-partial scholarship) (2007, Hons). He holds a Master of Arts degree in Lighting Design (Hellenic Open University, 2015, Hons) and a PhD in Architectural Lighting (Hellenic Open University, 2021, Hons). He is currently an adjunct professor and lectures at the Hellenic Open University “Architectural Lighting Design and Simulation Applications” and “Advanced Modelling and Photorealism” in the postgraduate programs "Lighting Design MA", "Documentation and modeling of Monuments and Archaeological Sites MSc" and "Design of Visual Effects and Animation MA". He has also in the past taught the course "Lighting Technology and connection to production" in the postgraduate program "Lighting Design MA". Furthermore, he is a postdoctoral researcher at the Hellenic Open University, with a scholarship on the research topic "Determination of lighting conditions from antiquity to the industrial revolution". He has participated in several lighting-related scientific and educational research projects and Erasmus Intensive Programs such as "Lighting Design - State of the Art and Trends" (Athens, Porto, Berlin). He has served as a juror in an international design competition, as a reviewer in scientific journals, supervised several theses of postgraduate students and authored numerous publications in scientific journals and conferences. His research interests cover all aspects of light, with particular emphasis on issues related to architectural lighting and light art, as well as issues in the field of historic buildings, cultural heritage, and architectural digitization. In 2014 he co-founded "Krama architects", an award-winning design firm with 3 prizes (2 silver and 1 bronze) in an international competition in Milan (Italy), providing architectural design from a very small scale (jewellery and furniture design) to building installations as well as interior and exterior lighting design. He is also involved in scenography and lighting design in artistic productions and theatrical plays. He is a founding member of the Hellenic Lighting Association (HELIA), member of Europeana, the Technical Chamber of Greece, the Panhellenic Union of Architects, the International Association of Designers - I.A.D. (as krama architects) and the International Design Club - I.D.C. (as krama architects).