L-Acoustics L-ISA offers an immersive 360º experience for an art exhibition

SeoulSound has deployed a sound system, with technology L-Acoustics L-ISA, for the immersive 360º experience on display at an art gallery in Seoul.

Beyond The Road – Seoul 2021 is an immersive experience of 360 degrees that stimulates the five senses and can be seen in the ALT1 of The Hyundai Seoul in Yeouido. For the realization of its sound infrastructure has been used the technology of L-Acoustics L-ISA.

Presented for the first time in the Saatchi Gallery from London in 2019, Seoul is the first Asian city to host this immersive art show. Sandal 33 rooms different from department stores and culminate with a screening room.

The project has the collaboration of the creative producer Colin Nightingale, the creative director Stephen Dobbie and the electronic music artist James Lavelle, of the British group Unkle. Beyond the Road also includes works by artists from various fields., like film directors Danny Boyle and Alfonso Cuaron, the perfume designer Azzi Glasser and the multimedia artist Tupac Martir.

To prepare for the Asian debut of Beyond The Road, the sound designer Salvador Garza Fishburn and the local developer, Ms.. Jackson, contacted the local L-Acoustics supplier, SeoulSound, to help them create the immersive experience in the ALT1 gallery. Fishburn specified an immersive audio installation on the 33 individual spaces of the show.

Previous experience with L-Acoustics sound systems had proven their ability to create a consistent experience across a range of products of different sizes and formats..

The sound was helped by Carlos Mosquera, engineer L-ISA Labs at L-Acoustics, and helped Fishburn use the software L-ISA Studio to create immersive mixes anywhere.

SeoulSound deployed more than 90 L-Acoustics boxes throughout the space, Including 5Xt, X8, X4i along with monitors and subwoofers Syva Sub and SB18 to expand bass bandwidth.

The small coaxial speaker X4i of 4 Inches is the star of the show and plays a crucial role in providing clear sound in ten of the smaller rooms. It has also been installed in the entrance hallway of the gallery and in those that connect the rooms.

Art exhibitions in the corridors benefit from the discreet profile of the X4i, that facilitates the sound experience of the visitor while exploring the different spaces. One of these corridors, featuring an art installation of a graffiti-laden London public bus stop and a telephone booth, has three X4i, an eight-inch monitor and a Syva Sub hidden under the seats at the bus stop.

The SeoulSound team has used the Array Morphing tool from LA Network Manager to balance low frequencies in all spaces. “When visitors explore all the rooms with their variety of sights and sounds, we know you're getting a consistent audio experience that will keep you immersed from start to finish”, Explains Soon Il Yun, CEO of SeoulSound.

Several L-Acoustics monitors have been installed in medium-sized rooms that required a longer range. One of the spaces has a huge dining table and a grand piano placed in one of the corners. Four monitors installed in each of the four corners of the room, accompanied by two SB18 subwoofers to extend low frequencies, provide an immersive sound experience.

The exhibition culminates with an immersive projection room equipped with six X8 coaxial enclosures. A projection screen in the center of the room can be seen from the seats on both sides, with three X8s installed per side. Fishburn and his creative team have created an audio piece to accompany video content where audio elements move within the space to match the video..

The proposal of Beyond The Road of an immersive artistic experience in which sound plays a fundamental role is a success both from a technical and aesthetic point of view. The exhibition team has made use of L-ISA technology to offer a multisensory exhibition that reinforces the visual impact, with an equally attractive sound design.

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