Project name
Abri Maximaal
Client
Jop Vissers Vorstenbosch
Location
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Control solution
MADRIX
Engineering
Dennis Morren
Lighting designer
Jop Vissers Vorstenbosch
DiGidot partners
N.A.
Photo & video credits
Svetlana Semenova
The Story
Just outside Muntplein, on the Herengracht canal, stands the new art piece by Jop Vissers Vorstenbosch, called "Abri Maximaal". This work was inspired by the artist’s fascination with retro fluorescent neon signs and bus stop advertisements, and it's vibrant glow illuminates the night city with bright colours.
An inspiration from the past
Vorstenbosch's work is part of the Amsterdam Light Festival. This year’s festival theme is legacy, which in Jop’s case manifests through his reflection on old commercial signage and its slow decay over time. “I was inspired by the idea of the light tubes fighting for life. That twitching effect, when it’s in the constant battle between being on and off.” It’s left as a forgotten legacy in light of the new high-tech solutions of today. To Jop, this contrast between the old and new - the cutting-edge and nostalgic retro - was the main point of inspiration.
The theme of commercial signage fits with the urban narrative of the bustling district of Amsterdam. Being located just outside the shopping centre, the art piece extends that notion. “It has a commercial feel, but it doesn’t sell you anything,” says Jop. “It’s just there, and if you walk around it, it reflects the surrounding city lights in its glass panels. It invites viewers to interact with it and see it from different viewpoints, and it communicates with the city.”
The design intentionally combines contrasting elements, positioning organic patterns, pixel lighting, and steel industrial structures together. “It’s like a paradox - placing things that don’t meet together. Even if you look at this high-tech structure and see the old classical building behind it, it contradicts.”
Behind the artwork
This art piece uses multiple elements that complement each other: the long fluorescent-like light tubes and the glass chambers flowing beneath them. The lamps are made with RGBW LED strips, diffused with a plexiglass layer with paint on top. The patterns on these light tubes were inspired by organic shapes that resemble abstract elements from nature. The glass chambers are made of layered slats with laser-cut etchings, each one illuminated with an LED strip at the top and bottom.
Jop is using 5 DiGidot Extended units for his project, each one controlling different segments of it. He wanted to make the contrast as high as possible to counteract the darkness. “Because it is located in the city, there are specific brightness requirements. During the day it works at 100% to stand out in the daylight. When the evening comes around, the DiGidot C4 automatically dims the lights to 80%. After 11 it goes to 10% to not disturb the neighbors but still be visible for the passing boats.” This feature is available in the DiGidot software under trigger controls, which automatically calculates the time zone of the installation with an accuracy drift is 5 seconds a year.