2min
Mar 5, 2024
The Grammy after-party hosted by Universal Music Group and produced by event designer Krislyn Komarov and producer Mary Hill from Krislyn Design and Production was a calm vibe for those 1,000 souls who arrived at Nya Studios in Hollywood ready to relax after the excitement of the awards telecast.
For the years they have been designing the event, it’s always a study in shadow and light thanks to the vision of Komarov and Hill. This year they were joined by designer Zaid Arriola for fabric elements. The design team created a multi-textured look keeping the client’s desire for environmental awareness top of mind. Found objects, upcycling, and reusable décor items all were part of the final creation.
In terms of crowd flow, the objective was to create three distinct spaces, two of which were inside the large, open studio. The third was a separate entrance area -- a large black tent accented with Coca-Cola red, the event’s sponsor.
Ray Thompson, Images by Lighting’s Sr. Lighting Designer who has worked on several UMG after-Grammy events over the past few years with Krislyn Design, was well aware of Komarov’s love of dark and moody lighting. He and his team found ways to amplify her vision with a series of lighting techniques using the total environment which began in the entrance, a black tent.
The area differed in feeling from the rest of the event. “We accented the almost all-black design with red down lighting, red lamps, and red LED neon,” Thompson says. “To contrast this, we accented perimeter plants with a clear burst of white light.” There was no uplighting in the tent, he explains. All the beams were pointed down, cutting through a hazy fog to create a dramatic look.
From there, the overall color palette became much lighter yet was also hazed to retain the shadowy mood. The large studio was divided into areas using design elements and light. In the center of the space, branch patterns were projected across a series of columns and a greenhouse structure which were accented with candlelight. A bar on either end of the room reflected two different designs – one a grid pattern and the other a fabric treatment using silver metallic fabric.
While the walls were used for textural and tonal video projections, the floor was an equally important lighting surface. In the red and black tent, a gobo breakup pattern softened the strong lines of the bar and projections. In the main bar area, while the wall featured a grid pattern of shadows on shadows, grid shadows on the floor were created from coffee tables made from a grid and outfitted with battery-packed lighting. Circular gobos contrasted the grid shadows. In the VIP area, which was lined with silver metallic fabric and filled with cloud-like chairs and couches, a gobo called moonscape was projected to further give the area a dreamy look.
Through creative use of found and organic materials and lighting, this post-Grammy event was very much like music – a personal interpretation of an experience that will no doubt resonate with guests over time and through memory.
Photos: Patricia Von Ah
