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Orange County Performing Arts Center

Costa Mesa, California, USA

The Orange County Performing Arts Center has a strong history in its California community, dating back more than 45 years from its conception in 1969, to its most recent addition -- the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall -- which opened in September of 2006. Its recent opening signified a landmark for the Center, not just to celebrate the addition of a world class concert hall, but to commemorate the 20th anniversary season of the Orange County Performing Arts Center. The celebratory gala proved an ideal event to employ the creative capabilities of Color Kinetics’ intelligent LED lighting.

Conceptualized by designers Greg Christy and Nathan Jones of Brite Ideas, the lighting scheme incorporated both direct-view video elements and complementary wall-washing effects -- all enabled by Color Kinetics’ versatile LED technology. The direct video lighting display comprised 72 units of iColor® Tile FX mounted in vertical arrays against the venue’s back wall. Visual effects commenced with waterfall imagery cascading down from the top of the clear tent. Additional effects simulated the transition from dawn to dusk, concluding with a spectacular sunset. To bring these designs to life, custom video content was streamed to the iColor Tile FX units via Video System Manager (VSM).

In addition, the design team called for the use of more than 45 ColorBlaze 72 fixtures to be installed along the venue’s opposing walls. These were used to project bold, saturated colors against the white interior surfaces of the tent. Digital video content was fed to the ColorBlaze 72 fixtures via VSM. The effect created representational images, suggesting flowing movements to coincide with the video projected on the iColor Tile FX units. This marked the first opportunity that Brite Ideas streamed digital video content to ColorBlaze 72 fixtures, which are typically intended for wall washing.

The entire project, from design to the completion, was developed in a thirty day period -- although the lighting set-up was completed with ease.

“The iColor Tile FX and ColorBlaze 72 fixtures enabled us to complete a truly successful event,” said Greg Christy, CEO, Brite Ideas. “The possibilities for various lighting designs are infinite, and due to the longevity and durability of the Color Kinetics LED fixtures, we can use these products for years to come.”