In the fall of 2001, the creative team at Dollywood contacted UV/FX Los Angeles with the idea of designing a finale room for the museum; a space which would serve as the culmination of the visitors' experience at the museum. The folks at Dollywood wanted a space that physically replicated the Smoky Mountains landscape, and that was conceptually inspired by Miss Parton's song ‘The Light of a Clear Blue Morning’.
The basic idea was that visitors would enter a nighttime environment, which would subsequently evolve into sunrise over the course of the song's playback. The space was to be a combination of painted and three-dimensional scenery. Armed with reference materials supplied by Dollywood's creative team, UV/FX designer Jon Craine began sketching concepts. Early in the design process, Craine traveled to Dollywood to experience first-hand the space in which his design would be implemented. Still under construction, the space was roughly a box 25ft tall by 30ft wide by 30ft deep. Included in the space were recently completed three-dimensional scenic elements: a waterfall, boulders, rock outcroppings and 25ft tall pine tree trunks.
Craine then returned to LA with the task of creating a scene that lead the audience to believe they were standing on a ledge within the forest overlooking the Smoky Mountain region. Within a few short weeks, Jon had his design approved by Dollywood and UV/FX immediately began making preparations to produce the design over a three-week period in February. Jon and his two best painters executed the design without a hitch. The end result is a breathtaking effect; standing within the space, one feels as if a forest under the moonlight surrounds them. Along with the 2-dimensional painting, the physical elements in the space were fluoresced with UV/FX's unique ultraviolet sensitive materials, achieving a realistic night-time environment. The night sky then turns to day and a whole new scene is revealed.
(Ruth Rossington)
