In Episode 1 of "Nightscapes" we delve into the massively underrepresented role light plays in a night out with a hint back at the radical Nights by Absolut party we threw last month. You remember, the one with the giant futuristic LED disco ball that transformed the NYC skyline from Red Hook's Pier 9. That event kicked off a series of Absolut transforming nightlife conventions around the world in partnership with leading artists. In the new Nightscapes series we take a deep dive in to the unique elemental transformations.
Speaking with the creative minds behind the Nights event in Brooklyn (Heather Shaw and Alex Lazerus of Vita Motus, VTPro) as well as world renowned lighting and party gurus like Jan Kennedy (who is now incidentally a creative director at Prada) we begin to get a sense of what goes in to a full scale event. These people think about lighting and mood more than nearly anyone attending these immersive events, myself included. Something that escapes us in the heat of the moment is the creative energy that is put forth by designers and artists to make our night special. In the first episode of Nightscapes, light finally becomes the focal point of the conversation.What's really stunning is the sheer amount of man-hours behind any one of these parties. Combining unique locations with lofty aesthetic goals and high-end artists isn't the easiest thing-sure-but you don't often think about how not easy it all is. Hanging a five thousand pound re-imagined disco ball over a crowd nearing two thousand is serious business. That being said, they take the party part seriously as well, though in more dynamic ways than one might imagine. When we speak of the current club aesthetic, or talk about 'clubbing' (ew) in general, we see variant versions of a look created in Vegas, which is crass, and generally uninviting. What this team is aiming to do is bring back balance in an extravagant, yet inventive way.Leading up to the waterfront event in Brooklyn, there was only rain. None was expected for the day of the party, so no one thought much of it. However, at the event site, this made prep and setup a huge challenge, something you need to watch the video of to fully appreciate. What all the designers and creatives who play a part in Nightscapes by Absolut have in common is a deep love for transforming conventional nightlife, whether it comes from strobe lights at English raves decades ago, or (gulp) Burning Man. You don't get these sorts of results without a deep commitment.