Scharff Weisberg helped design one corporation create an innovative look for Empire Force Events’ party for the Krisam Group’s hotel and event-space managers at Chelsea Piers in New York City.
A large G-LEC ClassicFrame™ LED wall–the new transparent LED graphics display curtain–played a key role in the cocktail room design concept implemented by design one president Christien Methot. Scharff Weisberg is the exclusive US rental agent for the device, which has been employed by rock concerts and corporate events.
The G-LEC ClassicFrame is a very large-scale LED graphics display renowned for its transparency, light weight, and the rich coloring and speed of its graphics. Unlike a video wall, the ClassicFrame ultrabright pixels are 2" apart, allowing not only visual transparency but also audio and wind transparency. The G-LEC ClassicFrame consists of two or more aluminum frames, each with 30 acrylic tubes featuring 16 ultrabright RGB LED pixels. The frames can be mounted together in any configuration. They show still and animated content stored on a graphics server, as well as live or recorded video.
"We see the G-LEC ClassicFrame as part of a new breed of revolutionary products in our industry, which mark the convergence of video and lighting," says Scharff Weisberg partner Peter Scharff. "The applications for G-LEC ClassicFrame are endless, and the creative options are many."
According to Methot, a 4x3 configuration of G-LEC frames, supplemented by two 3x2 stacks, were "used as design elements, not video screens" in the cocktail room, which was draped in white with a floor covered by white confetti. "This very immersive environment became soaked in color by the G-LEC LED wall, a [HES] Catalyst server system, Color Kinetics Color Blast® LED fixtures and half-a-dozen VARI*LITE VL3000s, all provided by Scharff Weisberg," he explains. A MA Lighting grandMA console controlled the moving lights.
Also in the cocktail room, a Catalyst™ Version 3 server and Christie XL100 projector from Scharff Weisberg spilled images of abstract computer art and extreme close ups of natural elements, such as water and leaves, across three white walls. The dining room, draped in black, had a completely different feel. Above the tables hung LED color-changing globes. Beneath the lucite-topped tables were wireless-controlled LED color-changing fixtures, which cast color up from the floor.
Scharff Weisberg supplied VARI*LITE VL3000s™ to add color and texture to drapery and tables, Martin MAC 250 entours on the floor surrounding the room to sweep the drapes with subtle effects, and a grandMA Lite console to control the moving-light fixtures.
"The key in this room was to allow the VARI*LITE [fixtures] to be subtle, creating just a bit of toning on the black drapery so the LED fixtures above and below the tables remained the focus of the eye," says Methot.
Paul Sonnleitner was the programmer in the cocktail room; Scharff Weisberg’s Sean Cagney served as moving-light technician in the dining room.