Guardian Angel Cathedral, Las Vegas
Originally built in 1963, the Guardian Angel Cathedral has served residents and tourists in Las Vegas for more than 50 years. With a multitude of stained glass mosaics created by world-renowned artists Isabel and Edith Piczek, the sanctuary inside is a stunning showcase of color and architecture. Desiring an updated LED lighting system to more effectively illuminate the worship environment, the church worked with lighting consultant Bill Brennan, principal of Just Lighting Inc., and 4Wall Entertainment who supplied the design with Gallery and Spectra Cyc 100 luminaires from Altman Lighting.
4Wall's Barbara Brennan reports, “Their existing lighting system was about 10 years old, so we were brought onto the project by the lighting consultant to update their outdated conventional fixtures. They wanted to look at an LED solution for both the power and maintenance cost savings, so we installed a system with the Gallery and Spectra Cyc 100 luminaires to light the sacristy and the large mosaic behind the altar.”
Lighting meets architecture
As the team at 4Wall got started on the design, it would be imperative that the new lighting solutions be able to blend in with the sanctuary, while still being able to overcome the challenges of the architecture. In an iconic house of worship known for its straight lines, Brennan knew they had to find the right fixtures to make the design a success.
"Part of the challenge of the project was that there was nowhere to place the fixtures [since] they wanted to maintain the aesthetics of the historic building." Barbara Brennan, Senior Account Executive, 4Wall Entertainment
“It’s a very interesting structure that is actually in the shape of a triangle with a really high roof,” continues Brennan. “Part of the challenge of the project was that there was nowhere to place the fixtures [since] they wanted to maintain the aesthetics of the historic building. Originally, it seems the space was designed to use a lot of daylight for the worship services during the day, so there was not a lot of places to actually hang fixtures. We really had to focus on what were the right fixtures for the job to help us overcome the lighting challenges of the project.”
Turning their attention to a solution needed to light the sacristy and altar, the fixtures would need to be in a small form factor, but still capable of providing a broad, even wash of light. Having seen the capabilities of the Gallery LED Series on a previous project, Brennan was sure they would be up to the task.
“As we were looking at the fixtures to light the sacristy, the church did not want the fixtures to be overpowering, and they didn’t want to see them,” Brennan explains. “On a previous casino project, Tim Bachman had shown me the Gallery product line, and since it is such a powerful fixture in a small casing, with multiple lensing options, we knew it would be a great solution. We now have 24 total fixtures, 12 on each side, attached to Unistrut and tied back into the dimmer rack. Additionally, the fixtures are using the Beam Wash lens option to cover a lot of area with minimal light loss, and it works perfect.”
"We now have 24 total fixtures, 12 on each side, attached to Unistrut and tied back into the dimmer rack. Additionally, the fixtures are using the Beam Wash lens option to cover a lot of area with minimal light loss.... " Barbara Brennan, Senior Account Executive, 4Wall Entertainment
Specification specifics
The Gallery Series is a family of LED luminaires designed to serve as a versatile solution through profile, beam wash, wall wash and flood options across a variety of color temperatures. With a 92+ CRI engine, 4000 lumens of output and dimming options that include local on-board dimming, Mains Dimming, DMX/RDM, 0-10VDC and DALI, the Gallery Series also offers a number of mounting options making it an ideal lighting solution where aesthetic and performance expectations are high.
“When I looked at the large and colorful mosaic behind the altar, I saw it as almost a backdrop or a theatrical cyc.” Barbara Brennan, Senior Account Executive, 4Wall Entertainment
“When I looked at the large and colorful mosaic behind the altar, I saw it as almost a backdrop or a theatrical cyc,” adds Brennan. “To light it, we needed to have a dynamic white, so we used the tunable white Spectra Cyc 100 luminaires because they could give us a really nice, flat wash all the way up. For their placement, there is a marble façade on stage that allowed us to tuck the cyc fixtures behind it in a ground cyc application that looks beautiful.”
The popular Spectra Cyc cyclorama/wall wash luminaire family utilizes a diverse line of LED choices including RGBA, RGBW, 3000K, 5600K, and tunable white versions, to blend beautiful, rich colors via a patented LEDblending lens. Available in Cyc 50, 100, 200, and 400 models, individual units can be linked side-by-side for greater saturation.
“After we commissioned the new design, the church was very happy,” Brennan notes. “They really liked the 4000K color temperature we chose because their old 3000K system was a little too muddy. They get so much ambient light coming through the stained-glass windows, we needed to use a color temperature that would balance and not be washed out, and the Altman fixtures gave us the light we needed.”
"They get so much ambient light coming through the stained-glass windows, we needed to use a color temperature that would balance and not be washed out, and the Altman fixtures gave us the light we needed.” Barbara Brennan, Senior Account Executive, 4Wall Entertainment
With the new lighting design complete, the Guardian Angel Cathedral is now ready to continue sharing its message with the Las Vegas community.
“Being that the church was originally built in the 1960s, it has really clean, straight lines, and the form factor of the Gallery worked really well,” concludes Brennan. “They are only 50-watt fixtures, but their punch is phenomenal, and they put out a great amount a light. It is an extremely versatile and elegant lighting solution...."
