Mendrisio is a small town in southern Switzerland that’s home to the FoxTown Factory Stores, the first factory outlet centre in Southern Europe.
Opened in 1995, FoxTown is far from a typical factory outlet. Covering 30,000 square meters with more than 160 stores, bars, restaurants, a play area, and even a casino, FoxTown is a shopping and entertainment destination.
As the center’s management team planned an expansion in 2022, they conceived a bold idea for a new entertainment experience: The Sense Gallery, Switzerland’s first multisensory museum.
The Sense Gallery was brought to life under the visionary leadership of Luca Gambardella.
Tasked with creating an immersive and modern digital space for FoxTown, Gambardella envisioned a fusion of science and art designed to engage the senses and provoke reflection.
In collaboration with Compagnia Finzi Pasca, known for their work with Cirque du Soleil and Olympic ceremonies, The Sense Gallery became an extraordinary space where “nothing is as it seems” and features immersive rooms designed to awaken the senses of its visitors through cutting-edge AV technology and tailored sensory experiences.
By the summer of 2023, a team of artisans and artists joined forces to shape six distinct rooms: Tunnel of Light, Upside Down World, Infinity Room, House of the Fox, OLTRE, and Enchanted Forest.
With cutting-edge AV solutions from Leading Technologies, The Sense Gallery offers an immersive experience, transporting visitors into its mesmerising worlds.
“After the project was approved, we began looking for reliable AV partners,” said Valerio Tartaglia, IT Manager of Tarchini Group, the owners of FoxTown. “For The Sense Gallery, the requirements of the ideal partner matched perfectly with the profile of Leading Technologies.”
The journey through The Sense Gallery begins in the Tunnel of Light. As visitors pass through the portal of illusion, vibrant lightscapes dance and intertwine like dreams coming to life.
Mirrors amplify the enchantment, multiplying sensations and transporting attendees on an exciting journey through time and space accompanied by ethereal harmonies with a synthesised backing track.
Leading Technologies installed AtlasIED SM52T surface-mount speakers for this room, cleverly hidden among the light displays and positioned outside the tunnel.
The speakers comprise a highly efficient woofer section and a FerroFluid-cooled, titanium dome high-frequency driver.
Vocal and musical clarity is optimised by the advanced design of the AtlasIED TRX Control WaveGuide high-frequency director.
These speakers provide visitors with clear and detailed sound, utilising the sense of hearing to guide them through the tunnel.
AtlasIED’s 1200-watt DPA1202 multi-channel amplifier powers the speakers.
The network-based DPA1202 is a 4-channel amplifier that can be configured in three different amplification arrangements to meet the design requirements of any installation.
The final result of managing the delays between the various speakers creates a realistic tunnel effect.
The journey continues into the Enchanted Forest, where visitors follow a magical path that draws them closer to the primordial beauty of nature with each step.
Every corner of the room offers a complete immersion into nature, with mirrors and video projections harmoniously integrating with natural elements to craft a magical and captivating atmosphere.
An AtlasIED DPA1202 amplifier powers the room’s audio, consisting of bird calls, vocalizations, and other background sounds expected in a forest primeval.
Upon exiting The Sense Gallery, visitors realise they have experienced a dynamic, exciting, and multisensory journey: an adventure into the unknown guided by the skillful use of lights, colors, images, and sounds.
“We are proud to host such a groundbreaking initiative and push the boundaries of both visual and sensory design,” said Tartaglia. “Much of that was made possible by AtlasIED’s amplifiers and loudspeakers, which are among the most advanced on the market.”
