National Media Promotion:
Shannon Ericsson and his unique, artistic design work recently came to the attention of the marketing staff of William Shatner’s “Heartbeat of America” program.
Someone on staff had been traveling and visited a church that had a very “familiar-looking” ceiling design in their Sanctuary. They commented that:
“It looked a lot like the Starship Enterprise coming out of the ceiling right at me…… It was amazing”
That led them to contact Shannon at his Omega Consultants firm in Olympia, WA. An interview transpired over several days for a possible appearance on the program to feature his unique architectural designs that resembled so many visual attributes of the Starship Enterprise. Shannon commented on the “Starship” looking ceiling designs on a few of his church facility projects:
”I have always been a fan of Star Trek on TV and have been fascinated with the visual look & appeal of the Starship Enterprise…..Turns out that the design shape of the starship could have some acoustical performance benefits if it was replicated onto a ceiling above a stage, in a church or performing arts center. So, whenever an opportunity came along, I was eager to see if I could facilitate another one of my “signature” designs….”
Capital Christian Center, Sacramento, CA
”A number of my peers and clients alike have often commented that they can always tell one of my designs by looking at the ceiling above the stage.
The technical design goal for me has always been to closely integrate the acoustical performance, especially from the ceiling above the stage, with the amplified sound system performance, projecting sound out into the seating sections of the space. It just so happens that the Starship Enterprise is able to do that really well, with the added benefit that all of my clients think it is a very unique & distinctive design, and, they also think that it “Looks Really Cool……”
Another design opportunity presented itself with Dr. Jerry Falwell’s, Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, VA. In the early 70’s, TRBC became recognized nationally as one of the fastest-growing churches in America.
On May 15, 2007, Dr. Jerry Falwell finished his work on this earth and went home to his Heavenly Father. As the new pastor, Dr. Falwell’s son Jonathan is continuing the vision and legacy put forth by his father. Notice the “Starship Saucer” –>
Shannon worked with TMA Incorporated International Architects of Valdosta, GA, to incorporate the Starship Enterprise saucer design into this ceiling of the proposed new sanctuary, seating over 10,000.
One of the later design projects to incorporate the Starship Enterprise visual characteristics was this church. Shannon worked with Curtiss Doss, of McGehee, Nicholson, Burke Architects in Memphis, TN on the project.
Shannon commented on this design:
“I was able to actually design a little of the saucer portion of the starship over the front of the stage, but also, I added the two nacelle design shapes below & behind the arc of the saucer.
The starship ceiling shapes were enhanced with a very high-performance lighting system to visually focus the unique attributes of the ceiling design.
The church has an excellent choir, orchestra, and worship team that puts this design into effective use every Sunday.
The Heartbeat of America marketing team was very impressed with Shannon’s unique design work, incorporating Captain Kirk’s “NCC-1701 Enterprise Starship” into so many of his facility designs…….
