"I've enjoyed a good relationship with the team at XS," said Lieberman. "When XS managing partner Jesse Waits announced that they were ready to take the next step at the club in terms of lighting, we put our heads together to come up with a state-of-the-art concept. They wanted to incorporate newer technology into the design so they could stay ahead of the competition. We built our design with pixel mappable fixtures such as Nexus and ÉPIX, which could do things that weren't possible when the club was originally conceptualized."
Among the high-tech features that Lieberman incorporated into his design was a custom designed DJ booth. "We wanted a booth that allowed the DJ to face front and back," said Lieberman. "We created a 3D video screen with six cubes that displays video on four sides to create a sense of depth."
Once the DJ booth was constructed, Lieberman turned his attention to the overall design of the venue. His goal: to use lighting to create a completely immersive experience in the club, making every aspect of the room an interwoven nexus of light, music and energy.
"When I looked at the room I wanted to highlight all of its architectural elements with tech driven visual excitement," said Lieberman.
Lieberman lined the walls, archways and soffits of the club with 80 Nexus Aw 7x7 panels. Using a MADRIX controller with a grandMA console, visual elements are pixel mapped throughout the venue via the Nexus units.
While the Nexus panels unify the visual landscape at XS, the ÉPIX Strip 2.0 units and struts that support the large DJ video panel provide greater depth and detail to key scenic elements. Like the Nexus panels, this technology is pixel mapped to display images that coordinate with video.
"Everything in this room works together," said Lieberman. "Technology has given us great new tools to create more movement and add unity to lighting designs. We wanted to use this capability to create something cutting-edge and unique at XS - it's what this club is known for."
(Jim Evans)