International. The silence is often provoked by the view of the Louis Vuitton Foundation building, Frank Gehry's architectural gem. Rising to the sky like the giant sails of a great ship; with its 3,600 curved panels delicately balancing its form and function with infinite precision, the distinctive structure inspires a silent, cathedral-like reverence through the absolute power of its design.
Within the rich auditorium section of the Louis Vuitton Foundation, silence is not only a natural response to the beauty of the salon, it is also highly desirable – enriching the experience of witnessing performances by internationally renowned artists such as Yuja Wang and Vladimir Epivakov, who take place within these walls.
It was with this desire for absolute silence in mind that Prodster installed 14 Maverick Silens 2 Profile luminaires from Chauvet Professional within this show space. The 560W fan-free equipment operates in complete silence, making it very suitable for this intimate venue, according to Bruno Madec, Prodster's Technical Director.
"We manage many cultural and institutional venues in Paris, including the Louis Vuitton Foundation," Madec said. "For many years we were waiting for a silent spot light projector of reasonable size and weight. Considering the shows we host, including classical, dance and jazz performances, we want to create as quiet an atmosphere as possible."
Delivered to the Luis Vuitton Foundation in June, the Maverick luminaires are accommodated in three different positions at the front of the stage. From there they can cover the entire stage, as well as highlight the architectural features of the room during an opening or cocktail party.
"Beyond their quiet operation, Maverick teams have the qualities we wanted," Madec said. "Chauvet engineers added a 16-bit graduation with tungsten emulation, perfect color propagation, and a linear zoom of 10:1, which makes the units very versatile. It is important for us to be able to reformat our stage in two hours, due to the variety of functions and shows that take place in this space."
"The programming here is very rich and eclectic," Madec continued. "This requires having a particularly flexible and adaptable lighting system that goes from a piano recital to a jazz scene, for example. Therefore, it is very desirable for us to have motorized moving heads that allow us to make adjustments, at the same time provide very fast and accurate illumination."
On September 23, the Maverick Silens 2 Profile created this "fast and precise lighting" inside the Luis Vuitton Foundation, when the renowned venue reopened its doors for the first time since the COVID-19 lockdown was in place. People returning to the auditorium for their social distancing shows this fall will see the effects of the new Mavericks, but they won't hear them, thanks to them working quietly to contribute to each show. This is exactly what Bruno Madec and Prodster had in mind.
