Flight paths are commonplace over airports, but passengers using Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport experience “Flight Paths” of a very different kind. The installation called “Flight Paths” is the latest public artwork to link concourses at the country’s busiest airport. Created by artist Steve Waldeck, it simulates a walk through a forest with immersive lighting, video, projection, and sound effects.
The $4.1million art installation is located in the 450-foot underground walkway between concourses A and B. Featuring the sound of birds chirping, images of the tree canopy, a rain shower, and even lightning effects, it delivers a unique experience to passengers traversing the pedestrian corridor.
“What’s most exciting to see is how the mixed media is tied so tightly together,” says Matt Pearlman, senior account executive at ILC, Illinois-based equipment provider and systems integrator for “Flight Paths.” “There are thousands of multi-layered aluminum cutouts of the tree canopy, embedded colored lighting, LED video, projections, and ambient audio. Local passengers will even recognize birds native to the area.”
ILC has numerous credits for public art installations, museum exhibits, and exterior lighting. ILC worked with John Featherstone, principal at Lightswitch, to create the content for “Flight Paths.” ILC’s lead systems integrator for the project was Joby Benoit. The company frequently uses Alcorn McBride equipment for lighting and show control. It was logical to consider Alcorn’s V4Pro show controller for “Flight Paths.”
“The main reason we selected a V4Pro to trigger the show was its reliability: Alcorn McBride products are bulletproof,” says Pearlman. “The V4Pro sends commands to lighting, video, projection, and audio. It also handles all the scheduling, communications, and interface with building controls. The V4Pro’s ability to deal with all kinds of protocols was critical: We can send any command out of it for great flexibility with the devices used in the control system.”
The V4Pro’s ease of use was another plus. “It’s a very complex system that operates with just four big buttons. That makes it easy for the airport employees who maintain it day to day,” Pearlman notes.
“The main reason we selected a V4Pro to trigger the show was its reliability; Alcorn McBride products are bulletproof.”
