In December 2016, the Ekaterinburg Museum of Fine Arts (EMFA) presented the Kasli cast iron pavilion with a new lighting system. The pavilion included in the UNESCO World Heritage list consists of over 1500 unique details and sculptural compositions made of cast iron, and weighs approximately 20 tonnes.
“Standard spot lights” were replaced with 37 white light LED luminaires by IntiLED, which makes it possible to see the smallest details of the expressive ornament and rich décor of the exhibition of the Uralian artistic casting.
24 IntiSTARK, IntiTOP and IntiBEAM flood luminaires are installed along the perimeter of the hall, in the middle of which the exhibition is located, “…and present the plastics of the pavilion and all the sculptural elements in a very interesting way. Golden elements and textiles are put in a very favorable light.
Moreover, various materials are illuminated with the light of various temperatures,” EMFA director Nikita Korytin says.
Illumination consists of the white light of 2 color temperatures – 4000 К and 5000 К. To highlight multiple details the project uses various optics: 5°, 7°, 15°, 30°, 38° and 80°. A special feature of the new lighting system is that the sculptural composition is illuminated also from the floor side with the IntiLINE and IntiSLIM luminaires of cold white light for the 1st time.
This solution makes the pavilion visible from the Historical garden square, which makes it a part of the urban landscape, and also makes it possible for the museum visitors to get a better view of each detail of the unmatched masterpiece of artistic casting, and appreciate the exquisite fine work.
The range of images depicted in cast iron is truly impressive: bird women, rare flowers, dragons, fantastic fishes and animals. There definitely was a reason for fine art expert Boris Pavlovskiy to call the Kasli pavilion “an encyclopedia of cast iron artistic casting”.
The light design, the project works and equipment supply were ensured by by the light engineering company MT Electro.
The Kasli pavilion is an unmatched masterpiece; it is a clear example of how graceful and fine cast iron can be in capable hands. The cast iron pavilion was manufactured at the Kasli factory under the project of Saint-Petersburg architect Е. Е. Baumgarten as an exhibition case of the Kyshtym Mountain Area for the International Artistic and Industrial Exhibition in Paris in 1900. The cast iron palace in neo-Russian style impressed the French capital by its ornamental splendor, and the Kyshtym Mountain Area received the highest awards in the Metal Item Manufacturing category.
