To add some branding to the Z100 & Coca-Cola All-Access Lounge at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York in December, sponsor Coca-Cola fashioned a chandelier from aluminum bottles.
Photo: Jeeyun Lee/BizBash
At a dinner following the spring collection presentation of Lanvin designer Alber Elbaz at the Carondelet House in Los Angeles in November, ExtraExtra suspended decorative feathered hats among chandeliers above the table. This caption has been updated to credit ExtraExtra.
Photo: Mark Woodworth/BFAnyc.com
Los Angeles-based artist Jorge Pardo created special-edition lanterns to hang above the tables at the Hammer Museum’s gala in September. The lanterns were later sold through the Gagosian Gallery.
Photo: Stefanie Keenan
Adults and celebrities played chess with life-size pieces.
Photo: WorldRedEye.com
Hundreds of balloons from Balloon Trix hung from the ceiling during the V.I.P. dinner. The space changed colour with each course, starting with blue, morphing to pink for the main course, changing to orange for dessert, and ending in red.
Photo: George Pimentel
Todd Events made a wedding held inside a large barn in Aspen seem more intimate with two tall signature bars and scattered seating and food station vignettes. Hanging glass globes appeared to lower the ceilings.
Photo: Karlisch Wrubel Photography
Matthew Parker Events crafted lighting fixtures for a speakeasy-themed wedding using hats from a party supply store, decorative ribbon, corded wire, and filament bulbs.
Photo: Yvonne Wong
MSNBC White House Correspondents’ Dinner Party
Dramatic chandeliers set the tone at the MSNBC party.
Photo: Michael Loccisano/MSNBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images for MSNBC
Giant playing cards hung over the tabletops, bent to give a sense of movement. A chessboard motif served as the backdrop for the stage.
Photo: Stéphane Poirier
As part of Rolling Stone's “Rock Weekend” festivities at the Super Bowl in February, artists like Pete Wentz got behind the turntables in a flying DJ booth during a bash at the Crane Bay.
Photo: Sean Smith Photography
Iceculture created a DJ booth on a platform at the back of the room.
Christian Dior Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2013 Show
One million flowers blanketed the walls of Christian Dior's July show during Paris Fashion Week. The Bureau Betak-event included a room covered with red roses.
Photo: Courtesy of Dior
Each flower was hand made and comprised of custom-printed stock, crepe paper, and tissue paper.
Photo: Claire Barrett Photography
To kick-start holiday shopping in November 2011, Barneys New York turned its flagship store on Madison Avenue into Lady Gaga’s Workshop. The custom 40- by18-foot truss that marked the entrance was completed overnight in preparation for the midnight opening.
Photo: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for Barneys New York
Signposts high above the crowds detailed each station's chef and menu.
Photo: Jessica Torossian for BizBash
Fox Emmy Party
Working with Fox's Bob Stillo, Russell Harris Event Group produced the Fox Emmy party at Soleto Trattoria and Pizzaria in Los Angeles last September. The Russell Harris team described the event as having a "Restoration Hardware-esque" look, with design by Thomas Ford. A Ford-designed sculpture used old-fashioned sign letters, metal numbers, and plexiglass signage to represent the three hosting networks: Fox Broadcasting, 20th Century Fox, and the FX channel.
Photo: Dan Scott/American Image Gallery
Ten street signs, each 10 feet tall and made of PVC pipe with a weighted wooden base, were placed throughout the 136,000-square-foot store to emphasize the neighborhood's iconic streets. Illustrator Bill Brown's art for Target's campaign was painstakingly hand-drawn, sketched, and scanned in for each sign.
Photo: Jim Shi
Google and 'The Hollywood Reporter' White House Correspondents’ Dinner Party
Google and The Hollywood Reporter welcomed guests to Friday night party at the W hotel's Great Room with an alphabet-board sign.
Photo: Daniel Schwartz
Unicef Masquerade Ball
Designed by Shiraz Events, the event took place on December 13 at New York's Angel Orensanz and had a sinister, superhero-inspired look. Deriving inspiration from comic books, the dessert table had candies with phrases such as "pow!" and "blow!" written on bright signs.
Photo: Sean T. Smith
'Food & Wine' Best New Chefs Event
At the culinary event at New York's Pranna on April 2, large marquee letters spelling out "Food & Wine" surrounded a lounge area.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
For the 2010 Boardwalk Empire premiere, HBO spared no expense, hosting three parties to promote its new series. The event in New York turned Rockefeller Center’s Rink Bar, Sea Grill, and Rock Center Café into a Prohibition-style speakeasy, and an illuminated sign for the show at the entrance referenced the bright signs on the Atlantic City boardwalk from that era.
Photo: Keith Sirchio for BizBash
Looks range from sleek to whimsical.
Photo: Hak Lonh for Champion and King
In the music room, hundreds of mylar balloons were strung across the ceiling and along the walls to create an elegant yet festive cocktail party atmosphere. The chandelier and wall and curtain treatments were preexisting elements, while all furniture was brought in.
Photo: David X. Prutting/BFAnyc.com
A balloon ceiling treatment covered the dance floor, where guests discoed to the Al Sofia Orchestra and DJ Rock City throughout the night.
Photo: Liliane Calfee
Balloons
At an Art Institute of Chicago gala in May, Kehoe Designs covered the ceiling of an all-white lounge area with hundreds of clear balloons.
Photo: Ryan Sjostrom
The American Folk Art Museum's Katie Hush and Matt Beaugrand used balloons to add some dimension and texture to the otherwise stark facade of Metropolitan Pavilion, which hosted the museum's benefit. Rows of large, stationary white balloons, attached to rigid ribbons and weighted down by silver stars, lined the red carpet.
Balloons linked one basketball hoop to the other. The playful court was supposed to represent a game of good versus good.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
Airstar America provided several large lighted balloons with the American Express logo.
Photo: Kayla Hernandez for BizBash
Gotham Hall's balloon ceiling
Photo: Shira Agmon/LensGirl Photos
Inflate USA's line of inflatable structures for events includes more than 30 different sizes and shapes, such as the Luna, designed to act as a portable bar area, and the Trident, a massive tent structure designed for concerts and expos that can be set up in less than five hours. The structures, which cost from $800 to more than $5,000 to rent, are all fully brandable.
Photo: Courtesy of Inflate USA
UNC Paris's inflatable furniture items are now available in the U.S. under the moniker Modern Inflatables. The line includes a sofa, chair, table, pouf, deck chair, and rocking chair. Made in France from clear, recyclable polyurethane thermoplastic, the items can be rented with the company's standard range of interchangeable, colored fabric covers, which can also be custom-printed or embroidered with logos and pictures. Custom work takes at least six weeks to manufacture. Items start from $195 without covers.
Photo: Courtesy of Modern Inflatables
Blueprint Studios introduced a 20-foot-tall inflatable structure dubbed the Hypercube. Available for national and international delivery, the black-and-white cube can be used as shelter from the sun at an outdoor event and rents for $1,800.
Photo: Courtesy of Blueprint Studios
Classic Party Rentals showed off new chair covers, including the flowery Camellia style.
Photo: Barry Brecheisen for BizBash
Private Event by Preston Bailey
"I love creating a unique place for guests to congregate and enjoy one another, so I thought, why not create a massive floral carpet that would serve both as a beautiful focal point and a gathering area? I designed a 'carpet' and filled it with hundreds of beautiful blooms and then covered it with Plexiglas. The result was a statement piece that allowed guests to dance on air." —Preston Bailey
Photo: Courtesy of PrestonBailey.com/John Labbe
Discover Kazakhstan Anniversary Dinner by Colin Cowie
"My favorite part about the design was the research trip to Kazakhstan. Since the national color is blue, I created a palette of blue and grey and used elements like cobalt blue mirrors to showcase a modern Kazakhstan, and yellow miniature calla lilies for the bright future they have ahead of them." —Colin Cowie
Photo: Colin Miller
Private Event by David Beahm
"We were influenced by our surroundings. We let the decor of Blue Hill at Stone Barns rule our aesthetic, letting nature dictate the design. The hand-hammered copper urn visually grounded the design." —David Beahm
Photo: Brian Dorsey Studios
HBO Emmy Party by Billy Butchkavitz
"I find out what will be trending and available to the public around the time of my event—and then I avoid it." —Billy Butchkavitz
Photo: Gabor Ekecs
U.S. State Department's Art in Embassies 50th Anniversary Gala by David Stark
"From atop a 20-foot-tall viewing platform, guests viewed a giant optical illusion ‘street’ drawing created by chalk artist Michael Macaulay as well as many other radical art installations, sculptures, performances, and video art pieces." —David Stark
Photo: Heidi Ehalt
Bergdorf Goodman's Anniversary Gala by Bronson van Wyck
"The second the guests crossed the threshold, they were transported to another world, through the looking glass and down the rabbit hole. We raided Bergdorf’s warehouse and brought scenic elements from iconic window displays over the past 111 years—this was their 111th anniversary after all." —Bronson van Wyck
Photo: Billy Farrell/BFAnyc.com
Corporate Event by Steve Bales
"One of my favorite things is to take an ordinary space and turn it in to something completely unexpected. The Atlanta Hyatt, which was hosting an elite group of local and national corporate event planners, wanted to serve them dinner in one of the hotel kitchens. To make the space pop, we built floor-to-ceiling chalkboard walls on which we personalized each guest’s apron, laid wall-to-wall carpeting, and, my personal favorite, created one-of-a-kind hanging chandeliers out of plastic flatware. It was a complete transformation from boring to bold." —Steve Bales
Photo: Troy Kelly Studio
Columbia College of Chicago Open Doors Gala by Jeffrey Foster
"The event showcases student work, which is contemporary with an edge, requiring an environment that celebrates that level of creativity." —Jeffrey Foster
Photo: Kyle Flubacker
Quebec Biopharmaceutical Meeting by Michelle Gubitosa and Nilda Martin
"We designed and built the Kino Bar as an homage to Montreal native Kino Guerin, a master furniture builder and sculptor who bends rigid woods to get beautiful, graceful flow and movement." —Michelle Gubitosa
Photo: Michelle Gubitosa
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Modern Ball by Stanlee Gatti
"I admire Picasso because his entire life was devoted to the creative process. I am presently going through my own blue period. Combining that with his guitar made for what I thought was a great theme for a museum party." —Stanlee Gatti
Photo: Aengus McGiffin
'In Style' and Warner Brothers Golden Globes Party by Thomas Ford
"We used a theme of minerals and semiprecious stone, with Brazilian agates and geode images for the walls and tables, anthracite leather banquettes, and garnet-colored carpet. It took seven people four days to hang all the gold mirrored chain for the ceiling installation." —Thomas Ford
Photo: Nadine Froger Photography
Samsung Galaxy Note II Launch by Tony Schubert
"The client asked for an interactive space where guests could use the Note II to do fun things like order a drink, share music, or design a T-shirt, device cover, or dessert. We designed four individual pod-like stations showing off each capability. We had one week to design, fabricate, and install the custom pieces." —Tony Schubert
Photo: Line 8 Photography
Sheraton Wine Tasting by Andrew Stevens and Kim Swift
“We wanted to bring the Reidel brand to life organically with this centerpiece chandelier of 125 champagne flutes, each filled with a tinted resin and a ‘foam’ of micro glass beads.” —Andrew Stevens
Photo: Gregory Holm
Bryn Chernoff of Paperfinger created custom calligraphy stamps of each guest’s name, which doubled as place cards and favors at a private dinner party held at the Foundry in New York.
Photo: Jen Huang Photography
'Wild Wild West' Chandelier
The chandelier from Wild Wild West—and numerous other movies—offers a luxe look for events. The original Tiffany fixture is available for rental through Warner Brothers Property Department. (The Egyptian-style pieces also pictured have also been used for shoots like Scooby Doo and Watchmen.)
Photo: Courtesy of Warner Brothers
Opening of 'Otello' at the Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera celebrated the opening of its latest production, Otello, with a post-show reception and dinner on October 9. Designed and produced by Tyger Productions and held on the Met’s Grand Tier, guests sat at 24-foot mirrored tables that reflected the dramatic architecture. Tall gilded crystal candelabras holding boxwood topiaries ran down the center of the tables, while gold Venetian glass chargers and flatware added to the look.
Photo: Gruber Photographers
Kenneth Cole's Blogger Dinner
To showcase Kenneth Cole’s fall collection, Mark Addison of EventStyle produced an intimate dinner for fashion and beauty bloggers. Held inside the brand’s flagship store at Grand Central Terminal, the table design was inspired by the textures, colors, and materials from the new line. Cole’s love of found objects led the EventStyle team to design metal pipe candelabras that were placed at each corner of the table. The dinner was based around eight theme words, which were projected onto a fringed light installation that hung in the center of the space.
Photo: Aaron Fedor
William Close and the Earth Harp
Third-place runner-up William Close plays the Earth Harp, a large string instrument rigged to the surrounding architecture and environment with strings that can extend up to 1,000 feet in length. Close wears cotton gloves covered in violin resin, and plays the musical instrument-slash-installation by running his hands along the strings to create cello-like tones. Accompanied by percussion and other instruments, performances can range from ambient and trance-like to theatrical and energetic.
Photo: Courtesy of Elan Artists
Like the decor, the entertainment for the Primetime Emmy Awards' Governors Ball will match the theme. The American Heart Association had the same idea in 2006 when it put a model in a dress with a 30-foot-long skirt over the entrance to the New York Public Library.
Photo: Courtesy of American Heart Association
Washing a space in red lights is a simple but effective statement, which is what Stoelt Productions did at New York's American Museum of Natural History for this year's Clio Awards.
Photo: Vero Image
Exposed lighting adds to the color and the decor. At the Robin Hood Foundation's gala in 2003, event designer Avi Adler hung red tubular fluorescent lightbulbs over the cocktail area inside New York's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.
Photo: Courtesy of Robin Hood Foundation
12. Cellophane
For Bloomberg's White House Correspondents Association dinner after-party in 2007, Los Angeles designer Thomas Ford constructed a 20- by 20-foot lighting fixture. The piece, which was made up of more than 9,000 strands of knotted cellophane, reflected the pink and blue light from above.
Photo: imagelinkphoto.com
LED Party Floors rents LED-lit floors throughout the U.S. and Canada starting from $1,010 for an 8- by 8-foot floor.
Photo: TK
Pressure-sensitive fluids in Holo-Walls’ Liquid Fusion tiles swirl together when stepped on. Custom sizes and colors are available; rentals can be shipped throughout the U.S. and Canada, starting at $50 per tile.
Photo: Dan Scott/American Image Gallery
Holo-Walls offers Holo-Floor 2, a one-time-use decorative floor film that can be laid down onto any smooth surface. There are 14 patterns available, from $490 per 50-foot roll.
Photo: TK
Orlando’s Letz Dance On It has teamed with True Motion Marketing to offer motion-activated floors. Rentals start from $2,495 and are available throughout Florida, Chicago, and New York.
Photo: TK
Just Light That offers pressure-sensitive interactive LED-lit floors that can be synced to music. Its software can also display logos, animated images, scrolling text, or static branding. Available in Nevada, California, and Arizona, rentals start at $7,500.
Photo: TK
Rose Brand displayed its precision-cut fabric, which can be used as a backdrop, scenic element, tent liner, or ceiling cover. The laser-cut material comes in a variety of organic, abstract designs, but can also be custom-made to display logos.
Photo: Jeeyun Lee for BizBash
Cort Event Furnishings announced that it will be the exclusive U.S. provider of the Blofield collection. The inflatable couches and chairs, which come in white and black, will be available nationally in January. The durable yet lightweight furniture is perfect for outdoor events.
Photo: Jeeyun Lee for BizBash
These three masks were designed by Oliver Messel for guests at Count Etienne de Beaumont’s Flora and Fauna Ball at the Hôtel de Masseran in Paris during the 1920s. It was not uncommon for guests to have custom costumes made for the Count’s famously lavish Jazz Age balls.
Photo: Condé Nast Archive/Corbis
The octopus chair is the first piece in Spanish artist Maximo Riera’s Animal Chair collection. Riera spent three years designing the piece, using advanced technology and variety of manufacturers to give the chair, made of compressed foam, lifelike shape and texture.
Photo: Courtesy of Maximo Riera
Photo: Courtesy of Letz Dance on It
In October, Toronto’s Design Exchange paid tribute to Bruce Mau and other “big thinkers” at the venue’s annual Black & White gala. Organizers projected the faces of Mau, Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, and Walt Disney, among others, onto oversize white balloons.
Photo: George Pimentel
