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Blinding Light at the O2 - 09//04/2008

Reading based lighting design and rental company Blinding Light is enjoying a busy year at the O2 collaborating closely with event production company Sledge. This has involved supplying lighting for several different elements including a large seasonal ice rink, ambient and mood lighting for The Chill Zone installation plus a series of corporate events in different areas around the venue.

Says Blinding Light’s Paddy Stacey, “We have a great working relationship with the team from Sledge. There’s a good synergy between the two companies, their projects are always interesting and present creative and practical challenges which we all enjoy. Above all, their technical requirements are detailed and precise which makes everything flow smoothly from our end”.

Ice Disco

After receiving a detailed brief from Sledge, Blinding Light invested in a brand new Litec trussing system for this job, which was supplied by AC Lighting. With it they built a 32 x 32 metre box truss on a 7 metre high, 8 legged ground support system to surround the 30 x 30 metre ice rink. The rink is installed at the O2 for 4 months, taking advantage of the huge popularity of ice skating during the winter months.

Blinding Light's Patrick Stacey designed the lighting rig for the ice. It had to be dynamic and flexible, and account for the fact that the rink is effectively operating in a daylight zone of the O2 for the majority of its opening hours, which still see the environment benefit enormously from being lit. "I looked at texturing and subtle colouring effects for the daytime sessions" explains Paddy, "Sledge’s brief included wanting the ice to be brightened up, adding warmth and atmosphere to what can sometimes become a bit of a cold, flat environment. Obviously as darkness falls, the lighting effects become increasingly bold and dramatic".

There are approximately 80 generic lights on the rig, a mixture of chrome PARs selected for their cool, icy looks and reflective finish, plus 30 intelligent fixtures that include Studio Due colour wash units and Martin Professional moving lights - Blinding Light has also just become a preferred Martin dealer.
These are joined by 60 mirror balls of various sizes - including two 1 metre diameter ones - adding a flourish of ballroom glamour to the proceedings.

All lighting is controlled by an Avolites Pearl 2004 console - chosen for user friendliness - and all the chases and effects for the disco shows are triggered by sound-to-light inputs.

Once the Blinding Light team had completed the initial install and programmed the lights, the controller was left to be switched on each day by the duty manager, so "We wanted a really straightforward and very logical lighting desk that also offered all the initial programming options" says Paddy. The space is also available for corporate events, parties and other private hires, for which Blinding Light supplies an operator/programmer.

They also supplied power distribution around the rink, incorporating the DJ, skate hire, bar and portacabin areas and including 4 new power distribution units that were specially built and specified for the project.

Special Events

Via Sledge, Blinding Light has also supplied lighting and power distribution to a series of conferences and special events staged in assorted venues around the O2 including Indigo, New Orleans and the London Piazza. For the Rugby World Cup Finals and semi Finals, they supplied both interior and exterior lighting.