NEW YORK—Last month, Genesis House in New York City’s Meatpacking District unveiled its newest installation, STARSCAPE. Designed by creative director and production designer Ethan Tobman, who’s known for his work as creative director of The Eras Tour, the experience draws inspiration from the Korean winter solstice called Dongji—as a nod to the automotive brand’s heritage. (The luxury vehicle brand is owned by South Korea vehicle manufacturer Hyundai.)
To mimic the night sky, the installation features LED projections on the walls, ceiling, and floor that fill the space with constellations and bursts of starlight.Photo: Courtesy of Genesis House
She added that Tobman visited Seoul to familiarize himself with the Korean night sky and the brand’s heritage.
To mimic the night sky, the installation uses LED projections on the walls, ceiling, and floor to fill the space with constellations and bursts of starlight. Guests venture onto a translucent bridge that extends over an LED screen, where the city of Seoul appears beneath their feet. At the end of the seven-minute journey, guests are enveloped in darkness as the evening star is reborn and the cycle begins again.
There are 590 glowing lights that are precisely hung throughout to recreate the constellations that illuminate Seoul and New York—illustrating a connection between the distant cities.
Tobman said that the biggest challenge was producing “an immersive experience that captured the essence of light from its inception through its journey across vast distances, in combination with how light might sound, while providing a human element that made it emotionally resonant with people experiencing it at any point in the journey."
He added that he hopes visitors come away from the experience with “a sense of joy and wonder, and an opportunity to transport themselves out of the reality of their day to somewhere inside their imagination. It is a privilege to alter people’s sense of perception.”
STARSCAPE is open to the public through Jan. 12. Genesis House Restaurant guests receive exclusive evening access with a reservation.
Specialty menu items inspired by the installation include cocktails like the Bukdu Chilseong, a blend of night sky gin, dry vermouth, maraschino, absinthe, and orange bitters; the Cheongdo 75 with damson, persimmon, lemon, and sparkling wine; and the Starlight Choux made with apple, jujube, crème Chantilly, and starlight craquelin.
Panels with colorful designs and geometric light fixtures hang from the ceiling.Photo: Courtesy of Genesis House
