The prestigious ambiance of the Mercedes-Benz Gallery in Paris attracts visitors to explore an essential showcase of the famous German marque. Presentations of the latest models in the range, themed exhibitions, special events – just about everything is possible in this 500 m2 space where eco-friendly materials take pride of place and where Martin Professional lighting plays an important role.
More than two million people visit every year.
The atmosphere in the Mercedes-Benz Gallery is both welcoming and luxurious. As lighting plays a decisive role in producing this effect by creating an ambiance to match the nature of the exhibitions, 16 MAC Aura LED wash lights from Martin Professional were installed. Part of a permanent installation, programs can be altered to highlight new events with changeover approximately every two months. The initial specification was straightforward: highlight the vehicles and make it possible to change the effect at different times of day and night – a dynamic daytime program, followed by ‘disco’ in the evening and economy after nightfall.
The installation was produced by the company All Events, which has used tight timing, programming and a careful montage to the satisfaction of the Gallery’s managers. Franck Grizard, the project manager, explains how the installation came about.
“We had to propose a new lighting solution for two exhibition areas which had problems on several levels: the lack of brightness with the system previously installed, plus the need for a lot of maintenance,” he said. “Although the new lighting was to be designed for functional highlighting of the vehicles, we had to find a system that could provide a dynamic, promotional dimension.”
The first set of MAC Auras (8) was installed at the front of the showroom to highlight the vehicle on display to the public along the Avenue des Champs Elysées. The second set (8) was placed above the first vehicle as this space has no natural lighting. From a more technical point of view, the projectors were integrated in the existing niches, replacing the previous lighting. The MAC Auras were then suspended by threaded rods and secured by slings, and arranged in figure 8’s in the ceiling above the vehicles.
However, not everything was so simple, as Grizard explains: “The difficulty of this installation lay essentially in connecting up to the mains. The store system mainly incorporates light walls, whose flow is generated by LED bars. The result is a large number of DMX universes (5) with several zones. It was therefore necessary to incorporate 16 MAC Auras in these universes without having to take the DMX through the whole store.”
Cédric Lebreton, the Mercedes-Benz Paris marketing manager, explains why MAC Auras were selected: “These projectors can produce many effects, and to the best of my knowledge are the only ones that can provide a visual display of such fine colours. They also have very low consumption and, last but not least, the quality of Martin products is naturally an additional guarantee of reliability.”
Thanks to the installation of the MAC Auras, All Events has been able to revitalise the store by creating a light signal to the outside world. This means that the atmosphere of the showroom can evolve all year round in line with developments in the German marque.
