Archéoforum in Liège

The Archéoforum, under the Place Saint-Lambert in Liège, is a monumental infrastructure of 3,725 m² (ca. 84 x 44 metres) – the largest in Europe in fact. Every stage in the history of Liège from prehistory to more recent times is illustrated there by moveable and immovable archaeological remnants.

The audiovisual and light installation of such a site had to be in complete harmony with the scenographic progression but also in line with the operating constraints: discretion, quality of the result and reliability.

A. Constraints of the location
The preservation of sediments requires a precise hygrometric management of the environment. This entails a constant humidity of nearly 90%, which must be taken into account without fail.

B. Scenographic constraints
The determination to create a harmonious light ambiance that varies all along the way, which plays on the principle of chiaroscuro and must contribute to the poetic aspect of the discourse, meant that certain technologies had to be chosen from the outset: dimmers, and the play of temperature, colours and shadows.

C. Centralised control
There were many reasons for opting for centralised control:
•    Clarity of the installation and ease of maintenance
•    Need not to constrain a single site to host sensitive equipment (air conditioning, dust removal, etc.)
•    Possibility of being able to choose from several visit scenarios
•    Possibility of following the development of a visit and managing the flows
•    Possibility of being able to switch devices on and off remotely
•    Diagnosis of equipment, test functions

D. Decentralised units
Restitution units were installed all along the way to reduce wiring costs.

E. Show Control
The Medialon Manager programme, the supervisor and conductor of the entire installation, is installed on a heavy-duty PC, thereby maximising the operational reliability.

F. Technical aspect:

330 sources of IP65 lighting on dimmers
9 16-track players on Fostex hard discs for sound ambiance
29 stereo amplifiers
62 tropicalised speakers throughout the site
10 video players + projectors
Centralised management of guided tours, lighting, sound and video by Medialon Manager

For more details : http://www.archeoforumdeliege.be