Stories  

Gaylord Hotels + Lightswitch

Building the Client-Designer Relationship

No matter the industry, a good client relationship is integral to the work of designers. This may seem obvious, but we at Lightswitch pride ourselves on developing outstanding rapport with our clients, who range from independent artists to world-class museums, gardens, and entertainment venues. 

Perhaps none of our clients embody this essential relationship so well as Gaylord Hotels. Our journey with the Gaylord brand has spanned many years, beginning from a simple project and evolving into a beautiful construction of trust and collaboration. 

Lightswitch’s largest ongoing project with Gaylord Hotels involves an event called Christmas at the Gaylord Featuring ICE!, an annual, jaw-dropping display of skill and imagination from international artists.

Every year, each Gaylord location hosts 40 artisans from Harbin, China, who carve more than two million pounds of colorful ice. They construct immersive environments from a range of beloved Christmas stories, with a different tale featured at each hotel. 


It is the breadth of this endeavor that truly exemplifies our comfort and confidence when working with the Gaylord brand.

Each autumn, Lightswitch first installs lighting inside a temporary tent structure, which is insulated and chilled to a frosty -5°F before the ice is carved. We then return once the sculptures are complete to focus and polish the overall look.

Therefore, before ICE! is ever open to the public, our team is responsible for managing the project’s budget and installing lighting that will showcase – and not melt – the ice sculptures.

Over the years, we have gained a confident knowledge of how to light ice effectively and safely, taking into account the heat of the fixtures in the below-zero tent. 
However, despite its name, ICE! isn’t just about ice. During this huge event, Lightswitch not only lights the carving tent, but also activities such as snow-tubing, gingerbread building, and pre-show festivities.

In the end, we are responsible for six separate crews and their budgets, spread among four out of five Gaylord Hotel properties. It is the breadth of this endeavor that truly exemplifies our comfort and confidence when working with the Gaylord brand.


We have left the company with no doubt that they can trust us to continue to problem-solve and deliver stunning programming year-round.
We began this journey with Gaylord Hotels in 2000, when the Gaylord Palms had just opened to the public. Lightswitch was brought in to light an acrobatics show in the hotel’s awe-inspiring atrium, with the goal of attracting new guests. After this introductory collaboration, Lightswitch signed on to work with the hotel again during the very first ICE! show – though we were not originally part of the event at all. Instead, our task was initially to light secondary areas of the hotel during ICE! 

However, through this first collaboration, Gaylord began to see that Lightswitch is made up of more than just lighting designers. Our determination to act as advocates for their brand, facilitating a better experience for everyone involved, eventually led to a larger and larger scope for our team. Now, through many years and multiple management teams at the Gaylord locations, we have left the company with no doubt that they can trust us to continue to problem-solve and deliver stunning programming year-round, including exquisite atrium shows, custom summer entertainment, Halloween festivities, and, of course, ICE! 

In one instance, we observed that our usual rental equipment was being phased out due to industry trends. Rather than sourcing an increasingly scarce product, Lightswitch initiated an open discussion with the Gaylord team about viable alternatives. Throughout this transparent conversation, Gaylord’s trust in us as a partner allowed us to maintain the original design intent without impacting the operations of the hotel. 
For over ten years now, Lightswitch has acted as a veritable extension of the Gaylord Hotels brand. We now work at four out of five Gaylord locations, with an ever-growing partnership of trust and respect between our teams, as well as with other vendors – including fellow lighting designers.

We know it is rare for a design team to be given such an open platform for discussion, and we feel very lucky that Gaylord Hotels offers us the space to analyze future industry trends and insights. This unique client relationship allows us to look at the lighting rental market and interpret where it’s headed, and what that means for our clients. 

It is exactly this type of future-facing planning that sets us apart in our work with Gaylord Hotels. 
It is exactly this type of future-facing planning that sets us apart in our work with Gaylord Hotels. What began as a simple project evolved into a deeply understanding rapport, with our team’s demonstration of attentiveness and care ultimately awarding us an expanded scope and trusting partnership with a respected brand.

The sturdy foundation Lightswitch has built with the Gaylord brand allows us to continually balance the client’s vision with our evolving logistics. In fact, with a new Gaylord location in the works, there has never been a better time for thinking ahead. We are proud of the relationship we've cultivated with Gaylord Hotels, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds!