Nordstrom Light Weave Installations

Abigail worked with Co-Designer Bob Bonniol, of MODE architectural, to design volumetric light sculptures for the flagships store escalator cores of luxury retailer, Nordstrom.  Working for the architectural firm Callison, and for Nordstrom; they designed and implemented four elegant LED Light Weave installations which have been installed in the Vancouver, Chicago, and Toronto stores.

The Light Weaves are comprised of breathtakingly light weight custom copper strands which drop 20’ to 60' from the ceiling.  Individually controlled custom LED nodes are arrayed in a regular grid allowing for a dimensional and volumetric display of programmed patterns.

Abbey and Bob created a suite of evolving and varied ambient programming, which modulates with time of day to reflect the energy levels of the store environment.  Additional programs were created for holidays and special events.

The custom Light Weave LED sculptures were manufactured by Tait Towers, and installed by systems integrator 4Wall.

Phish

Abbey was invited by Chris Kuroda to collaborate on a co-design for the current Phish tour - An amazing opportunity to work together on design for this legendary band and their incredible live performances.  The goal creatively for introducing and incorporating a video element into the Phish touring show was that the lighting and video function as parts of one visual system.  

The production design for the show consists of a clean, simple architectural environment created by the video screen surfaces.  A low semi circular video wall encloses the band and defines their performance space.  During the first set a slim, stage wide, rectangle of video screen hangs above the stage;  echoing the minimal, linear array of the floor LED.  The lighting for set one is trimmed low, close to the screens, creating an intimate environment.

At the start of the second set the flown screens pull apart and and deconstruct into an array of irregularly spaced individual tiles.  The lighting positions travel out at the same time, opening up the shape of both systems; enlarging the scale of the performance environment and creating a flow of areas of negative space.  

In the first parts of the show the video content is more spare, and minimal, often filling the entire area of the screens in overlapping, shifting planes of color - to establish the architecture of the set, cleanly present the band in the performance environment, and introduce the visual element of the screens into the show.  In the later parts of the show both the physical environment and the content evolve to be looser, more broken up, less flat, and more active.  The images travel more across the screens; sometimes distorting and redefine the shape and space. 
The content design takes advantage of the Roe Hybrid tiles, which provide both a medium and a high resolution surface in one plane.

Lighting and video are operated completely improvisational by Chris from one console.  The video content was created by Abigail and Dan Scully.  The incredible expanding screen was provided and design engineered by Tait Towers.