OSLO, Norway – A pixel wall designed by ÅF Lighting and controlled by ETC Unison Mosaic has been attracting crowds and winning plaudits from media since it opened earlier this year. Mellbye Arkitektur Interiør AS also chose ETC Source Four lighting fixtures for the project. Geir Sire served as LD.
More details from ETC (www.etcconnect.com):
Seventy transparent LED panels are used in the food court at Oslo Central Station in Norway, known as Ø, to form a ‘one-of-a-kind,’ 14-meter-high (46-foot-high) pixel wall. The color or pattern on each is individually controlled by the 10,000-channel Unison Mosaic system. For the opening show, lighting designers – led by consultant Geir Sire – ran a sequence about traveling, while on other days, sequences with storyboards are run related to the time of day.
The wall, which faces east, makes it possible to imitate the sunrise indoors – perfect for gray days when the real sun doesn’t make an appearance – and then create different mood lighting throughout the day. The screens are also due to be connected to a sound system for evening music events. Not only will the DJ be able to manually control them using a button panel, but they could also respond automatically to trigger sounds.
It will also be connected to the Internet, so that visitors to the food court will be able to interact with it using their phones.
“We chose Mosaic because it’s an open programming language, and easy to work with,” Sire says. “The plan is that artists will be able to come and create artworks for the screen. For them to be able to easily program with it is a huge bonus for us.”
The large system, borne as a result of a three-year-long refurbishment of the station, came as something of a surprise for the Norwegians, since it was bigger and more advanced than originally expected. But, continues Sire, “the feedback has been great. Norwegian and European newspapers have covered it widely, all of whom have said they are impressed.”
Originally built as ‘the gateway to the city,’ the building also contains several live trees, lit by 10 ETC Source Four LED fixtures mounted high in the building’s roof – highlighting the trees when no natural light comes through the glass ceiling.
The interior was designed by Mellbye Arkitektur Interiør AS, who used the fixtures and panels to create a seamless combination of the station – which opened in 1854 – with the 2015 technology.
