LD Craig Rutherford And 4Wall Light Halsey’s Private Concert For Spotify Listeners

New York, NY- 4Wall is no stranger to the electropop phenom that is Halsey. 4Wall locations around the U.S. have provided the lighting for her many events throughout the country, from her last Badlands tour to a promotional radio event in Los Angeles. For her secret show last month at the Angel Orensanz Foundation on the Lower East Side, Lighting Designer Craig Rutherford turned to 4Wall for the lighting gear.

The goal for the lighting design was to help fill in the space of the Foundation and provide an impressive light show while staying within the budget given.

“I also personally wanted to do what lighting designers always want to do, interpret the music of the artist into light as best I could,” explained the LD. “With as much integrity to the original material as possible, while keeping the experience fresh and fun to watch.”

Rutherford’s rig was built around GLP Impression X4S fixtures provided by 4Wall New York.

“The X4S is a really great small workhorse LED light that is way brighter than it has any right to be,” said the LD. “I used them on the vertical trusses to echo the shape of the cathedral behind the band. They did all the pixel mapping, washes, and beam effects.”

Due to time constraints and preference, Rutherford kept his rig simple and small. The grand, dramatic venue also played a key role in the rig design.

“Since the Foundation space is an old synagogue, with a visual profile that is taller in the middle and tapers off toward the side, I wanted my rig to echo that motif,” explained Rutherford. “I ended up making the design with two taller 15' vertical trusses in the center and two shorter 10' trusses on the outsides of those.”

Martin Atomic 3000 DMX Strobes accompanied the X4S on the truss and were used for dimmer chases throughout the performance.

Several Martin MAC Viper Performances were used for the LD’s key light on Halsey.

“The Vipers were great,” said the Rutherford. “Framing shutters are invaluable in a situation like that, where I really needed to keep the light off areas where I didn't want it.”

The event for Halsey’s loyal Spotify listeners to get the first chance to listen to her new album live was a success.  Rutherford was satisfied with the one-time show and the service he received from 4Wall.

“The service and gear were so good,” said the LD. “I didn't even have to think about the rig or find my white gloves to pick up a cable, so I was good.”

To see more of Lighting Designer Craig Rutherford’s work, visit his website here - Blueshift Design.

Photos by: Peter Don (@donslens)