AgiLight ULTRA 650 RGBA modules overcome dust & heat of Burning Man

BY I.M. LYTEMAN

How did AgiLight signage modules and LED power supplies end up in the desert? 

Two words: Burning Man. 

The artist fnnch creates contemporary pop art, depicting objects from both nature and everyday life. His work can be found from New York to Hong Kong, and in private collections in 20 countries. 

For Burning Man 2024, fnnch designed a stunning color changing Solar Bridge. “The core idea of the installation was to make a piece in which solar panels were integrated into the artwork itself,” fnnch said. “Every solar powered piece I have seen at Burning Man has a solar array to the side of the sculpture. I wanted to do something that was self-contained — generation, storage and consumption all within a single artwork.” 

Signage lighting, fnnch realized, was best suited to his needs. “It is designed to be robust and power efficient,” he said. 

Premium modules pass the test

To overcome conditions in Nevada’s hot, dusty Black Rock Desert, the artist employed ULTRA 650 RGBA modules, 4 channel DMX controllers, two 180W 12V power supplies and one 60W 12V power supply from AgiLight to bring his vision to life. 

AgiLight’s ULTRA 650 RGBA modules are rated IP66.  That meant the LEDs were fully protected from Burning Man’s dust and sand or any potential heavy rain. 

Seven sections of custom laser-cut bent stainless steel form the Solar Bridge frame. The aluminum sides were similarly cut and bent and painted black with glossy automotive paint. Solar panels were mounted to the exterior with wiring through the frame. Both the solar and lighting systems end in the base of the arch. And the LEDs were mounted on sheets of twin-wall polycarbonate attached to the bottom of the frame. Because the top of the arch is flat, fnnch again used twin-wall polycarbonate that wouldn’t sag for the light face, adding a 3M diffusion film. 

The modules are mounted about 5½ inches (140 mm) from the twin-wall polycarbonate “sign” face for optimal color blending. 

The light show

The light show included four two-minute patterns that ran continuously from sunset through sunrise. Envision a slow rainbow progression, a pulsing amber, a series of color fades from the base to the top, and a warm white that slowly raised brightness levels across the arch. 

“The sculpture was totally successful in being self-contained,” fnnch said. “It required basically zero maintenance through the entire week. The batteries never dropped below 80%, and they were fully charged by 10 a.m. every day. The power system would need a little modification to be placed in a potentially rainy environment, but I purposefully went with signage lighting so that all of the lights, DMX controllers and power supplies would be ready for such a placement.

“I am in discussions now about a potential next destination for the arch. Hopefully, it will go up somewhere in San Francisco or beyond!”