Yael Erel is an architect, educator and light artist. She interweaves light research with academic teaching and practice. She is a registered architect and co-founder of lightexture, where she designs and constructs light fixtures and installations. She graduated with honors from The Cooper Union and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute . Erel has been teaching architecture since 2004; she taught at Harvard GSD, Columbia University, Pratt Institute, The Cooper Union, and is currently an Assistant Professor at the Rensselaer School of Architecture.