Party city in the desert Las Vegas has a new emblem – and what an emblem: High Roller is not just the biggest Ferris wheel in the world, but also Las Vegas’ top landmark. And as befits the city of gamblers, lovers, Elvis fans and party animals, once darkness falls, the 167m / 550 ft big wheel lights up the night with a brilliant spectrum of colours. Lighting specialists Martin Professional can claim the credit.
One of the greatest challenges was to offer visitors a unique experience from within the passenger cabins as well as from differing points and perspectives outside. Martin Professional’s Tripix range proved to be the best fit. At the time, they were the only products on the market with a converging light source, meaning the viewer sees exactly the light that the programmer intended. A classical RGB source simply wasn’t an option.
Observation Wheel with Precision Lighting Control
The team spent three years working on the High Roller project. “The amount of time we spent and the level of detail we worked with in the mock-up stage really was worth it. It allowed us to know the choices we were making would work as we intended when installed,” said lighting designer Abigail Rosen Holmes.
“It was important to respect the beauty and simplicity of the structure while at the same time embracing its kinetic qualities,” noted Mike Gurule of Bombard Electric. In contrast to many other lighting installations in Las Vegas, High Roller is intended to be the opposite of gaudy and in your face.
2,000 Martin Professional fixtures that can be individually controlled were installed on the wheel. Buddy Pope of 4Wall Entertainment, the project systems integrator, commented: “To me it is magical when, at night the wheel comes to life with light and turns into something different.”
Picture sources: Martin Professional / Denise Truscello
