Lauren Kennedi Ozie Dixon

is an investigator of light and color. As a is a designer, innovator, visual artist, and all-around creative, she has learned to explore lighting as a mechanism to infuse productions with multi-layered meaning, rooted in her interest in color theory and training as a theatrical designer.  Born in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised in Southern Mississippi, she has extensive training in the lighting design and creative production sector. Lauren also recognizes a deficiency in the current industry when it comes to lighting people of color and she is dedicated to not only perfecting her craft but also making sure that all people, especially those of color, are properly lit and represented in productions. 

With a multitude of different opportunities, from a summer internship in Shanghai exploring lighting internationally, to working for the lighting teams of high-profile events including the Emmy Awards Show, The Oscars, and the BET Awards, Lauren has been able to grow her skills under the careful tutelage of top experts in her field and explore a wide range of lighting styles and aesthetics from opera, dance, fashion, to theatrical lighting. Other theater and production credits include working for the Atlanta Shakespeare Tavern, The Southwest Arts Center, Destination Theater, Spelman College, Morehouse College, Carnegie Mellon University, The Pacific Chorale, and The California Institute of the Arts. She is determined to create impactful and thoughtful performances and productions and she takes particular pride in work that emphasizes the joy and accomplishments of people who look like her She consistently aims to be a part of teams where the creation of the work is as safe and imaginative as the art that is produced.

She earned her BA from Spelman College, where she created her own major and freelance design and consulting company, KaLeiDoscope Designs. Her major was Innovative Design for Production and Live Events, with a concentration in Lighting Design and a minor in Education. She also has an MFA in Theatrical Design from the California Institute of the Arts with a focus on Lighting Design.

She aims to create work that emphasizes art as a tool of freedom, a tool of self-care, and a place where the imagination can provoke material change in reality. Lauren also recognizes a deficiency in the current industry when it comes to lighting people of color and she is dedicated to not only perfecting her craft but also making sure that all people, especially those of color, are properly lit and represented in productions. 

Lauren also has several experiences inside the classroom from being a UPS Scholar to Camp Coordinator for the Alliance Theater in Atlanta GA, to being an Artist in Residence for Pre-K to Kindergarten for the New School at Carnegie Mellon University to currently teaching an enrichment course for middle school students about the basics of lighting at Oakwood Preparatory School in North Hollywood. Lauren is also a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and an advocate for serving her community, especially through the arts.

As Shirley Pendergrass and Kathy Perkins have pioneered the way for her to make space in the lights of the entertainment industry, Lauren hopes to serve as a beacon for future aspiring Black Women Designers as we “Light the Way '' to a better future.