BROOKLYN, NY — Lighting designer Richard Tatum of L&M Sound and Light used Chauvet gear to brighten One Hanson Place, a historic landmark tower with a four-sided clock and metallic dome, for the after-party for a VH1 cable TV special featuring female vocalists Miley Cyrus, Sheryl Crow, Jennifer Hudson, Melissa Etheridge and others, which was hosted by Paula Abdul. The neo-Romanesque building looms 512 feet. Tatum lit the marble lobby, formerly the Williamsburgh Savings Bank, which features 40-foot tall windows and a 63-foot-high vaulted ceiling fitted with elaborate mosaics.
New York City’s Landmark Commission oversees historic landmarks and Tatum said the commission has strict guidelines for work that is done. “You can’t damage, change or alter architectural landmarks, and we had to take that into account as we designed the lighting system,” he said.
Then there was the issue of the lights themselves. Tatum said company owner Lou Mannarino has a philosophical commitment to use energy-efficient technologies whenever possible.
“The venue itself is spectacular,” Tatum said. “When it comes to architectural places such as One Hanson in particular, it’s all about the architecture. If you uplight and highlight the architecture you are lighting the space.
Tatum was unfamiliar with Chauvet LED lights but decided to incorporate 16 Chauvet COLORado 1 and 24 COLORdash Battens along with traditional lighting fixtures. He used the COLORdash Battens to uplight the large windows and the COLORado 1 fixtures to uplight the architectural columns, using warm, feminine colors to add a sense of visual drama.
“I’m so impressed with the quality of the fixture itself and, more importantly, the extraordinary quality of the light they emit for creating beautifully designed environments,” he added.
The after party was a success, Tatum said, adding that the following week the annual VH1 Hip Hop Awards also had its after party at the One Hanson Place. “People really paid attention to the opening of this major venue,” he said.
The Diva’s party was also a fundraiser for the VH1 Save the Music Foundation. The foundation uses donations to purchase new musical instruments to restore school music education programs that have been cut due to budget reductions or to save programs at risk of elimination due to lack of instruments.
For more information, please visit www.chauvetlighting.com.
