1. Summarize the problem you set out to solve. What was the challenge posed to you? Did it get you excited and why?

The West Lobby was a fantastic example of a project where we transformed challenges into opportunities. The West Lobby was a small, cavernous space to begin with, with 8 robust columns in the center. We turned this space into an intimate and kinetic experience by dematerializing these columns by wrapping the, with two way mirrors and LCD screens, which we programmed with three difference immersive digital experiences.

2. What point of view did you bring to the challenge? Was there anything additional that you wanted to achieve with this project or bring to this project that was not part of the original brief?

Our work began on The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas by envisioning the central Chandelier Bar, and then we began to take on more and more until we were designing the West and East lobbies, all of the guest rooms, the Marquee nightclub, and the Jaleo restaurant. So our design vision shaped the resort as a whole, and these featured spaces within it. The West Lobby introduced most guests to this new groundbreaking place, so we wanted it to purvey the message that The Cosmopolitan was going to deliver a truly larger-than-life, sophisticated, outside the box experience, unlike any other in Las Vegas.

3. When designing this project, whose interests did you consider? (Discuss various stakeholders, audiences, retailing, manufacturing, assembly, distribution, etc., for example.)

When designing the West Lobby, as well as the rest of the spaces, our main consideration, our main focus was The Cosmopolitan guest, who we envisioned to be one who appreciates urban sensibilities, pays attention to good design, and expects all the best offerings without every having to leave the resort. Of course it was also an amazing opportunity to work with such an incredible group of partners, such as Related, and the rest of The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas team. Being part of such a talented and renowned team was just incredible, and the results of this is evident in all the exceptional level of detailing and quality in every corner of the project.

4. Describe the rigor that informed your design. (Research, ethnography, subject matter experts, materials exploration, technology, iteration, testing, etc., as applicable.) If this was a strictly research or strategy project, please provide more detail here.

Mock-ups, prototypes and modeling allowed us to experiment and test the complex interrelationships materials, forms and technology. We experimented with various display technologies in pursuing large-scale seamless columns before settling on new nearly bezel-less LCD monitors, including an involved series of scale mockups with everything from LED tiles to flip dots. For the two-way mirrors wrapping the columns, we studied many different materials over the LCDs, in an effort to discover one that would create the floating effect that the imagery now has on the mirror material we ended up choosing.

For the West Lobby, we created our first large-scale implementation of our Environmental Choreography System. This involved creating a series of hardware and software prototypes, testing the resolution, and stress-testing the synchronizing the 64 computers we used to power the installation.

We created a scale mockup in-house to test content. Because of the overwhelming size and amount of displays and computers, this process also included months of on-site testing with the actual columns. All the content we developed had to be custom tailored to the environment, the colors had to be adjusted to amplify the mirror element, the pace and scale of all moving elements had to be finely tuned to create a dimensional, active environment.

5. What is the social value of your design? (Gladdening, educational, economic, paradigm-shifting, sustainable, labor-mindful, environmental, cultural, etc.) How does it earn its keep in the world?

The design and identity of The Cosmopolitan was centered around entirely reshaping the experience of Las Vegas, from arriving to eating to dancing to sleeping. The West Lobby is arguably one of the most fantastic moments in the resort and it is the first space many of the guests will see. We wanted it to be a sleek, energetic, transformative space, which is why our digital interaction LAB created the state-of-the-art, digital, immersive experience with the 8 central columns. Each column face has 12 bezel-less displays (so that it looks like one fluid display) that work together with the other column faces to create one single canvas and whole experience. The Lab used LCD displays mounted behind a two-way mirror so that when the display is on, the images appear to float on the mirrors. When the display is off, the columns appear to be mirrored. The kind of “Through the Looking Glass” effect integrates the viewer’s images into the content that is mind-expanding. The imagery transforms the whole experience of the lobby, based on time of day or event. The sense of movement in the space is enhanced by the reflective mirrored ceiling, and dark chocolate granite floor.

6. If you could have done one thing differently with the project, what would you have changed?

We created three different digital story experiences for the West Lobby columns: immersive, ambient, digital programs called Dance, Four Seasons and Effervesce. We created technology with interactive capabilities. Our programming reacts to the presence and movements of guests within the space, but it was not used for the opening phase of the project. We hope to use it with new content soon to make the experience even more fantastic!