The EcoDot Led screen turns the façade of the Gold House into a large canvas of digital art

Wrapping around the northeast corner of the building, this 44 Planar solution has been installed×10 metre, which has been rated as the largest non-commercial street art Led display in North America.

when Rize Alliance Properties built its new mixed-use development Gold House, in the Metrotown community of the city of Burnaby (British Columbia), the promoter had to contribute to the Beresford Art Walk program (Beresford Art Walk) of the municipal government with a budget of one million dollars. This initiative was created to enhance Metrotown's fast-growing area by integrating art-focused cityscapes to promote pedestrian and transit spaces..

Rize hired public art consultant Jan Ballard from Ballard Fine Art and the designer of Gold House, Chris Dikeakos Architects to advise on the public art project. together, the consultants worked to make an innovative Led canvas on the outside of the building that could be used to present artwork by local artists..

Ballard Fine Art contributed careful research, a community engagement strategy, the selection of artists, the link between artists and the city, as well as public relations. With careful attention to detail, facilitated the initial selection of the artist and the commission of the concept of the artwork through manufacturing and installation with audio specialists, video, lighting and rigging ShowTech AVL, who helped in the design and management of technological challenges.

“With the public art project Rize Gold House we collaborated with artist Marian Penner Bancroft to provide an original inaugural artwork, creative and high quality that supports the vision of the project, fosters social connection and makes a meaningful contribution to the community's cultural landscape in a lasting way”, says Ballard.

The Gold House development includes two towers – the north of 41 flats and the south of 26 – that house 490 residential units, as well as more than 5.791 square meters of commercial space and offices between the floor and the fourth level. The project team determined that the most optimal location for a Led installation would encompass the second, third and fourth floors of the north tower building, oriented both north and east.

Led facades on this scale can be built using higher pitch led meshes, that can be mounted on the outer surface of a building (or other structures) and designed to create digital images that integrate into the architecture.

Since a 'wrapper' (wrap) Led would cover several windows of a commercial space, one of the most important elements was the degree of transparency., according to Christopher Moreno, ShowTech AVL system architect and project manager. “We knew people were going to work on those flats and they would have amazing views of the mountains from their windows facing north.. So, it was important to keep those views as much as possible, that became the driving force behind the search for an Led product”.

Moreno looked for something that met these requirements before discovering Planar's EcoDot Outdoor Led Mesh, a high transparency mesh designed for large outdoor surfaces of buildings.

“We became convinced that the product would not only meet transparency requirements., but it would be bright enough to be visible during the day and would last for the future”, Moreno said.

To determine the most optimal resolution, ShowTech hosted a demonstration in the Rize Gold House showroom. Using a product sample submitted by Planar, Moreno created a prototype of Led mesh suspended in a stainless steel cable in a frame, which was hung in a glass window.

“We showed them what an installation of 35, 45, 55, 75 and 100 mm pixel pitch”, Moreno said. “In the end, we decided that 55 mm offered the best balance between the clarity of the screen and the amount of transparency from inside the building facing outwards".

The installation began once the concrete structure and steel beams of the building were finished and was carried out in tandem with the exterior finishing works of the project.. ShowTech worked with the building's structural engineers to fix 400 stainless steel tensioning devices to ensure that the Led mesh tightened sufficiently.

Impressive platform for digital artists

The Led screen of the Gold House, made with EcoDot, Incorporates 792 strings with 181 nodes per chain for a total of 143.352 Nodes. EcoDot product family includes Eco-1, Eco-2 and Eco-4 (in correlation with the number of Leds on each node). The more Leds per node, brighter is. The Gold House installation incorporates four per node (so the product is called Eco-4 P55), creating a massive screen of 573.408 Pixels.

“The screen has the potential to reach thousands of locations, incorporating contemporary art into their daily routines”, explains Julia Schenck, Director of Design and Communications of Rize Alliance Properties of the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies.

Wrapping around the northeast corner of the building, the installation of almost 44 meters long and 10 High is the largest non-commercial street art Led display in North America, according to Brian Konechny, President of ShowTech AVL. “The project demonstrates how Led technology can be deployed to create value for the community. No one wants their community to be overwhelmed with digital ads for smartphone plans or car insurance. instead, the feeling is changing towards the use of Led technology for more artistic purposes”.

The Burnaby Art Gallery (Burnaby Art Gallery) is responsible for curating digital art to be exhibited on the Gold House canvas. “Once or twice a year, the gallery will manage an award process to select a new piece of digital art. That artist will then update his piece to fit into the exhibition.”, moreno clarifies

According to Julia Schenck, Rize's Director of Design and Communications, Gold House Art Show Gives Artists the Opportunity to Expand Their Work. “The exhibition has the potential to reach thousands of venues, incorporating contemporary art into their daily routines. Art and culture play a significant role in creating communities and we hope that building a public art screen will inspire those who connect with it.”.

On the other hand, this screen will also display works by burnaby school district students, giving budding young artists an exhibition and a platform for their work. “We see the potential of activated public spaces and how they become a hub for community interaction. Our investment in meaningful public art installations is one of the ways we can elevate everyday life within our developments.", explains Schenck.

Led mesh for outdoor EcoDot

The EcoDot outdoor Led mesh series allows for large-scale artistic and creative installations that can be designed in a variety of shapes and patterns. With a high degree of transparency, It is very suitable for building cladding with LED covering windows, as it preserves the amount of natural light that enters the building and the views from the inside that look outside (the pixel pitch of 55 mm is the most popular for building cladding with Led).

Flexible and lightweight, EcoDot outdoor Led mesh model features magnetic closure design for faster installations. and, with the right mounting hardware, can withstand hurricane-force winds. The product is waterproof, dustproof and incorporates a high IP grade, suitable for permanent outdoor use. Available in any custom color, mixes with buildings and other structures.

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