From Hangar to Sanctuary: Lighting an Experiential Brand Activation in Broad Daylight
You can't compete with the sun. But you can highlight what matters.
That was our reality when Southwest Airlines asked us to help transform an aviation hangar at Atlantic Aviation Burbank into a zen-inspired spa experience for the first anniversary celebration of Getaways by Southwest. The catch? The event was happening in the daytime, with natural light flooding through every angle of an industrial space built for airplanes, not relaxation.
Our job wasn't to overpower the environment. It was to enhance it, highlight the details, and create atmosphere in a space that had none.
And when the last guest boarded the special Southwest flight to Las Vegas, after hours of yoga, sound baths, massages, and social time in a hangar that no longer felt like a hangar, we knew it worked.
The Challenge: Daytime Lighting in an Industrial Space
Aviation hangars aren't designed for ambiance. They're massive, open, utilitarian spaces built for aircraft maintenance and storage. High ceilings, exposed metal, concrete floors, and harsh natural light flood in from every direction.
Southwest wanted to create a spa-like sanctuary inside that space, complete with yoga mats, Pilates stations, massage tables, charcuterie boards, and lounge furniture, for media, influencers, and guests celebrating the movie Spa Weekend and the anniversary of their Getaways program.
But here's the problem: when you're working in broad daylight, traditional lighting approaches don't work. You can't just "light the space" and expect it to look good. The sun will flatten everything.
So instead of trying to compete, we focused on strategic highlighting, making sure the most important elements stood out, even with the sun pouring in.
Making Neon Glow in Daylight
One centerpiece element was custom neon signage for Southwest's Getaways branding. Neon looks incredible at night, but in the middle of the day? It can disappear entirely.
We brought in rental power to ensure the signs had enough voltage to maintain their glow, then added front lighting to give them dimension and separation from the background. The goal wasn't to make the neon brighter than the sun; that's impossible. The goal was to make sure it didn't look flat or washed out, so it still felt like a focal point.
It's the difference between "there's a sign on the wall" and "there's a moment on the wall."
Hidden Lighting for Atmosphere
The other challenge was creating depth and warmth without making the lighting obvious. We embedded PAR lights inside the landscaping and decorative bushes throughout the space, giving subtle uplighting that brought the greenery to life and created layers in an otherwise flat environment.
When lighting is hidden well, guests don't see lights; they just feel like the space has atmosphere. That's what we were after. A cold, industrial hangar needed to feel warm, inviting, and spa-like, even at 2 PM.
We also added focused accent lighting around key zones: the massage area, the charcuterie stations, the lounge furniture. Not to blast them with light, but to give each area its own identity within the larger space.
Designing for the Guest Experience
Lighting isn't just technical; it's emotional. Every decision we made was about how guests would feel moving through the space.
When you walk into a spa, you don't feel overstimulated. You feel calm, grounded, present. We had to replicate that feeling inside an aviation hangar, in the middle of the day, with a brand activation happening around you.
That meant:
- Keeping lighting layers subtle and warm
- Highlighting areas of interest without harsh transitions
- Creating visual separation between zones (yoga here, massage there, socializing over there)
- Making sure decorative elements like neon and greenery had dimension, not flatness
By the time guests arrived, the hangar didn't read as an industrial space with spa elements added. It read as an experience.
A Successful Wrap
After hours of yoga, sound baths, relaxation, and social time, media and influencers boarded a special Southwest flight to Las Vegas for the world premiere of Spa Weekend, starring Anna Faris, Leslie Mann, Isla Fisher, Michelle Buteau, and Adam Demos.
The event marked the first anniversary of Getaways by Southwest, and Las Vegas, the program's most-booked destination, was the perfect setting for the celebration. Southwest even became the only airline scheduled to offer Spa Weekend as in-flight entertainment starting November 2026.
For 512 Creative, the project reminded them what experiential lighting is really about: not overpowering a space, but enhancing what's already there. We took an environment that wasn't built for the experience and made it feel like it was.
When the Space Isn't Built for the Experience
Brand activations, pop-ups, and experiential events often happen in spaces that weren't designed for them. Warehouses. Parking lots. Hangars. Rooftops. Empty storefronts.
That's where creative lighting makes the difference. Not just illumination, transformation.
If you're planning an activation, a launch, or an event that needs to feel bigger than the space it's happening in, let's talk. Because the best lighting isn't the lighting you notice; it's the experience you remember.
512 Creative
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