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Globen Arena

Stockholm, Sweden

What do the Pope, Dalai Lama, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and Color Kinetics have in common? Each has captivated the masses at Globen Arena, the world’s largest spherical building.

Globen has a 320-foot (110-meter) diameter and rises almost 280 feet (85 meters) high. A monumental landmark for Sweden’s capital skyline, the Globen serves as the city’s marquee venue for concert, show and sport attractions. Since its opening in 1989, lighting the enormous exterior surface of the Globe proved extremely difficult. Conventional sources could not efficiently light the structure, and the fixtures could not withstand the varied conditions of Stockholm’s climate, where the temperature ranges from -29 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit (-20 to 30 degrees Celsius). Rain, ice, snow, wind and sun would wreck havoc on fixtures.

Enter Color Kinetics. 17 years after its unveiling, the Globen owners, SGA Fastigheter, recognized the drastic advancements in LED-based lighting and tasked lighting designer Gerahd Rehm to transform the Globe’s exterior -- with the help of Color Kinetics’ ColorBlast® 12 Powercore fixtures. The state-of-the-art fixture was chosen to cast bold, saturated color across the 161,000-square-foot (15,000 square meter) sphere. Its rugged exterior and durable LED sources make the fixture well suited for the challenging climate. In addition, as a complete, single-cable line voltage system, the fixture requires no external power supplies, which further eases installation.

What seemed like a daunting and immense task was installed with ease. Stockholm Lighting Company AB conducted an assortment of tests and 3D design configurations and called for 670 ColorBlast 12 Powercore fixtures to light the sphere. CeCe El, a Stockholm-based electrical contractor, mounted the fixtures on 28 uniquely-designed, triangular-shaped metal support beams that encircle the perimeter of the Globe. The beams are affixed to a number of structures, including neighboring buildings, rails, vertical masts and specially-constructed extension arms, in a total of 31 locations in order to project light onto the sphere from all directions. Each beam holds roughly between 20 and 30 ColorBlast 12 Powercore fixtures, which are fastened on the two opposing sides of the triangular beam. The fixtures provide directional light and are individually programmed to change color instantaneously, without the need for colored gels or filters that would be required with conventional light sources. Additionally, they require little to no maintenance, and their long life source is an essential benefit for the hard-to-access beam locations.

The fixtures are DMX-controlled via a specially constructed wireless network. They collectively produce a multitude of light shows, including the display of a hockey team’s colors or customized effects that synch with live concerts inside the building. The possibilities for lighting designs are virtually limitless.