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The studio
Thornburg Design Studio was founded in 2024 by Charlie Thornburg, outside Muncie, Indiana, to build Luminaries: sculptures that write a place's story on the ground in light.
Charlie Thornburg
For about twenty years Charlie was a paramedic, the person who shows up on the worst day and has to solve the problem in front of him, calmly and correctly, the first time. In his last years on the job he started building custom furniture on the side: CNC-cut conference tables with multi-layer logos set into clear epoxy, lit from within, with signatures and text that glow.
That work led to a referral. The Town of Plainfield needed someone to build a core values lantern, and another company's lighting plan was not going to work. Charlie engineered a new one, solved how to keep letters sharp when light passes through a curved steel wall, and delivered the first Luminary. Ball State University came next.
Every Luminary is designed under his direction, from the first rendering to the night it is switched on.
Every Luminary is made to be admired by day and remembered by night.
How the studio works
Custom work
Every design is drawn around the client's own story.
One studio, start to finish
Design, mock-up, fabrication, and installation, managed in one place.
Made to last
316 stainless steel, built as a permanent landmark.
The studio takes on work that brings people together: schools, campuses, companies, memorials, and towns. It does not take on political or divisive messages.
