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Christie Projectors Pay Homage To Blues Legend At The New B.B. King Museum

CYPRESS, CA - (November 13, 2008) - Bowen Technovation selected Christie projectors to bring the life and story of blues legend, B.B. King to the B.B. King Museum and the Delta Interpretive Center in Indianola, Mississippi. 

The 20,000-square foot museum traces the artist from his roots in the Mississippi Delta to international fame as the King of Blues.  It blends traditional artifacts from B.B. King’s 60-year career with graphics and interactive media to celebrate his unique legacy and the rich musical history of the Delta.

Christie’s HD and LCD projectors were the first choice for the president and creative director of Bowen Technovation, Jeff Bowen.  “We designed the system to enable us to use Christie projectors exclusively because we felt we could support them better than projectors from multiple manufacturers.”

Bowen Technovation provided design, integration and programming for the media systems specifying Christie’s DW5K HD projector, which was used in B.B. King’s Introductory Theater. The Indianapolis-based company also chose two Christie LW300 WXGA LCD projectors for The Bus and the Exit Theater exhibits.

At the Introductory Theater people learn about B.B. King and his music, by watching a 16:9 HD video presentation sourced from an HD video server and displayed on a motorized screen measuring 168 x 94.5 inches.

Deployed in the same theater is the Christie DW5K HD; a 5300 lumens bright, 3-chip DLP® projector.  It features a 2000:1 contrast ratio, excellent source compatibility, native widescreen display and Xenon illumination for visually-stunning images that deliver high impact. 

The first of the two Christie LW300 projectors is located in the On the Road exhibit, also nicknamed The Bus.  The installation showcases an oversized re-creation of the 1940’s-era bus, which B.B. King toured in during the 50’s.  It has been outfitted as a small theater where several dozen visitors can watch a video about life on the road in the segregated south. The film is displayed on a custom 62 x 34 inch screen in the bus’s windshield, allowing visitors to travel through time, retracing the steps of the legendary blues singer.

The Christie LW300 in The Bus installation is mounted 12 feet above ground.   It produces bright images in native 16:9 format for powerful displays, features a 1000:1 contrast ratio, 10-bit image processing, maximum input flexibility and a large selection of zoom and fixed lens options. 

The second Christie LW300 is mounted on a ceiling cloud in the Exit Theater, where visitors wrap-up their tour by watching Coming Home, a video about B.B. King’s annual return to Indianola to perform a live free concert at his blues venue, Club Ebony.  The projector displays content from the HD video server on a wall-mounted, 16:9 screen which measures 116 x 65 inches.

According to Jeff Norris, Bowen’s project manager, “The Christie projectors are designed for this type of application.  They’re very reliable and capable of handling the long hours demanded of them.  Operating costs are very reasonable and lamp maintenance and replacement are easy.”

The museum designer for the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center is Gallagher Associates of Bethesda, Maryland.  The exhibit fabricator is Exhibits Concepts of Vandalia, Ohio.

About Christie

Christie, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ushio, Inc., Japan, (JP:6925), is a leader in visual solutions for world-class organizations, offering diverse applications for business, entertainment and industry.  A leading innovator in film projection since 1929 and a pioneer in digital projection systems since 1979, Christie has established a global reputation as a total service provider and the world’s single source manufacturer of a variety of display technologies and solutions.  With the acquisition of Vista Control Systems, Corp., Christie offers the most complete and advanced solutions for cinema, live venues, control rooms, business presentations, training facilities, 3D and Virtual Reality, simulation and education as well as industrial and government environments.