After a two year absence, UVLD returned to the old stomping grounds of Cobo Hall, Detroit for press week at the North American International Auto Show. UVLD’s Gregory Cohen and David Rees collaborated with Nathan Murphy and James Rossi of Martin Brinkerhoff Associates for a press event held by Hyundai Motors.   Greg acted as lighting designer and programmer while Dave lent his hand as the master electrician.  Production Glue’s Tom Bussey and Jack Hilley  led the technical production team.  In keeping with the somewhat muted nature of technical production at the year’s press events, the event incorporated existing booth properties to the greatest extent possible. Display walls, turntables and video walls were supplemented by elements provided by MBA.  The result was a very effective combination that supported Hyundai’s impressive vehicles and branding message . UVLD specified a modest lighting system of Vari*Lites and strobes to supplement PRG’s existing booth system.  UVLD remains committed to value engineering all of our clients’ projects, big and small.

It was great to return to the Detroit show and, to paraphrase Twain, find that reports of its demise are highly exaggerated.  While a few boutique brands chose not to show in Detroit, the show was well populated and impressive.  Displays were a bit more modest than in the past and press events overall were much less extravagant than the heyday of a few years ago.  While walking the floor it was apparent that the economic downturn weighed heavily on the branding message of the manufacturers.  However, it was really encouraging to see how positive everyone felt about the future.  The doom and gloom of the past year was overshadowed by consistent messages about greener pastures ahead, both economically and environmentally.  The prevailing attitude from the workers to the manufacturers and even amongst our colleagues in the technical production business was that their is a light at the end of the tunnel and it just might not be the headlights of an oncoming train.

Having recently been at the Detroit autoshow, I’ve been thinking a lot about car reveals.  I remembered this one from a Honda Motorcycle show we did a few years ago; it’s got some great stuff in it.  The water-crafts crossing upstage behind the scrim are on Foy rigs.  The five projectors other than the lower center one are all HD front projection, with the scrim being done with DL 2s.

The handheld video doesn’t do it justice, of course.  But I think you can sense that it was pretty cool.

Martin Brinkerhoff produced the event and was the creative director.  And the creative ROCKED.

As part of our ongoing relationship with Tishman Speyer properties, we were the event lighting consultant for the build out of both Top of the Rock and 620 5th Avenue, the premiere event spaces in Rockefeller Center. We are proud of our work and remain committed to designing events in both those spaces.

UVLD adds a unique element to the traditional field of event lighting: design. That’s not to say that our competitors aren’t great at relationship building or competent technicians, but as we look at each project without the encumbrance of a depreciating inventory, we’re able to create an ambiance that is perfect for your event rather than perfect for what we have on the shelf.

To be sure, we understand that value engineering is critical to a successful event. Our relationships with our vendors means that you’ll be able to get the right show at the price point you need without compromising the quality of what you’re putting visually forward to your guests.

Here are some pictures of our work in these spaces. Pamela Kupper is our lead designer on these events, and is a great resource for kicking around ideas or asking for estimates. She can be reached at 212 414 1502 x714, or via email.

Nice picture in a web gallery at MSNBC.com.  This is a show we’ve done for years, but we never get good shots during the show itself due to, er, being a little busy.  The photo gallery itself has some great shots in it, although we can’t claim credit for any of it except for Rockefeller Center!

There was a great article in Live Design about a the John Deere national dealer meeting we lit over the summer. This is an account we’ve had for a while, and it is a job of which we’re immensely proud. It’s a great group of people working together on what is always a great show. It really doesn’t get any better than that!

John Ingram leads the team on this show, and is thrilled to have Paul Sharwell and Dave Rees helping as both co-programmers and co-designers. Pete Cambell runs a great electrics department.

Although we’re thrilled with the article itself, the print magazine did a stunning layout, matching brand colors and creating a handsome looking piece. Marian Sandberg, the editor of the magazine, wrote the article and, in our not so humble view, did a fantastic job.

The Live Design article was great and had some great pictures.  Of course, they couldn’t print everything (!), so here’s a bunch more.

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Our friends at Production Glue have a nice blog post about a show we collaborated on revealing the new Burberry Sign in Midtown Manhattan.

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Industry super-mag Live Design published an article covering a round table discussion a bunch of UVLD designers had with long-time client Chris Drury and his technical director Ron Annas.  It was a great discussion, I think we were all suprised that we’re largely on the same page.  Marian Sandberg, who is the magazine’s editor, wrote the article and did a great job of pulling our seemingly random thoughts into a cohesive whole.  Part one of the article is available here.

Gregory Cohen and Cameron Yeary

Two candid shots from the Navistar show, showing two critical parts of the process.  Sitting around, and then looking at the drawings pensively.

This area of our site is very much under construction.   Visit us again, as we’re hoping to use this space for a way to opine about industry developments, post some (not so) candid pictures and find a way to quickly communicate ideas or trends.