Sometimes finding a venue that suits your event’s objectives and needs can be difficult. What if you need a venue that is specific to a theme or era in time?
Painting a Blank Canvas by Carol Porter of Porter Events
Sometimes finding a venue that suits your event’s objectives and needs can be difficult. What if you need a venue that is specific to a theme or era in time? Are there really venues in your town or city that fit an Arabian nights theme or a good ole hoe down? Are you sick of event after event in a hotel ballroom? Well perhaps you should consider finding a unique empty venue to create your event, a blank canvas. A blank canvas can be abandoned warehouses, steel mills, theaters, slaughter houses, airport hangers, marquees, barns or historical buildings. Any sort of room or venue that was once in operation but is now empty and can be used to host events. Here are some things to consider when “painting” a blank canvas for an event.
Budget for Room Fit Out
The most obvious benefit to painting an empty canvas is that you can create the exact vision of the event as you have full control over room layout, furniture and décor options. However, renting furniture and décor can be expensive especially for large events. To save some money for the fit out of the room you can use cheaper materials to create seating space. For example, you could buy hay bales, cover them with couch covers or sheets and decorate with colorful pillows. You could also make the event a standing event with limited tables, chairs and lounge areas for guests to occasionally take a rest.
Audio Visual
If your event requires staging or any kind of production you will most likely have to hire an AV supplier for your blank canvas. Some blank canvases may have light rigging or speakers as permanent fixtures. Depending on your production needs you may have to hire additional lighting and sound equipment. If the blank canvas has limited or no lighting, rigging or speakers you should carefully assess your event AV needs, check the venue’s power level capacity and where power access is located.
Essential Facilities
Does the blank canvas have a catering/kitchen facility nearby or will you have to hire in your own catering? If hiring outside catering, keep in mind food safety and health requirements mandated by the host city of the event and take all necessary precautions to ensure you follow these very important policies.
Bathrooms are another important facility. Check the location and number of bathrooms to ensure there are enough and proper bathroom facilities for your guests. Keep in mind if your guests are mostly one gender then you can convert male or female bathrooms to make sure there enough bathrooms.
Venue Environment
Some blank canvases may be large open facilities that may be exposed to the outdoors. You may need to hire heaters, fans or air conditioning units that may not be included with the facility. If the facility does have air-conditioning or heating the venue probably does not keep the air on unless there is an event. Therefore, do not forget that there will be anywhere from a few hours to 48 hours of set up required in the event. You will want to discuss with the venue when exactly heat or air conditioning will be turned on.
Article by Carol Porter, Event Manager at Porter Events. You can reach Carol at M: +61 (0)422 838 414 E: carol@porterevents.com.au
