HARD Summer Music Festival first premiered in 2007 and has rapidly gained nation-wide recognition within the American dance community for its upbeat music, charged atmosphere, and bigger than life performances. This 2-day event in August attracts approximately 80,000 music lovers each day and took place at the Auto Club Speedway approximately 50 miles from Los Angeles, California.

This year, the HARD Summer Music Festival experienced a new and improved self with the support of America’s best-known electronic music event promoter, Insomniac. Founded in 1993, Insomniac is now the world’s largest dance music and experience company creating beauty and inspiration in every element of their festivals. With the philosophies from Insomniac in place, improvements were made across the HARD Summer Music Festival, everything from logistical guidance to aesthetic upgrades. Such aesthetics included 3 massive Shade Structures made by Stretch Shapes.

Prior to the event, Insomniac reached out to Stretch Shapes as the leading innovator of stretch fabric products for event professionals. The idea was to create one shade structure that was colorful, allowed airflow, provided shade, and could be an artistic element of the festival. With an idea in mind, the team at Stretch Shapes worked some magic. From a simple idea, the Stretch Shapes team was able to create a variety of visual concepts for the Insomniac team to pick from. Upon the review, each concept was loved so much that all three Shade Structures were a must have for the festival.

As soon as Insomniac signed off on the designs, the Stretch Shapes team began working on all elements needed to make the three giant 100′ foot shade structures. Six different colors of IFR (inherently flame retardant) fabric were cut with a CNC machine using proprietary software for precision. All 600 Flat Panel Sails within the structures were sewn in-house by our meticulously calculated sewing crew. Once all panels were sewn, our team labeled and packaged all the materials and shipped it directly to the site for installation. Stretch Shapes’ world-class install crew was there for every step of installation and strike with incredible work ethics and can-do attitudes. Installation took a total of 3 days, and strike took 2 days.

All said and done, the three behemoth shade structures were a huge success. These 3 geometrically beautiful shade structures helped set the tone of the festival yet provided the festival attendees a sanctuary away from the scorching UV rays. Posts featuring Stretch Shapes’ Shade Structures continue to flood social media weeks after the event and it’s easy to conclude these functional art structures were critical yet beautiful elements of the festival.

How was your experience working with the Stretch Shapes creative team during the design process?

Super smooth and professional experience from start to finish. The Stretch Shapes team worked with our vision and gave us great creative input. They then provided several different options based off of those discussions, and we ended up very pleased with the final design.

How was set up and strike?

The Stretch Shapes team were very comprehensive in detailing their on site needs for the build, and it went without a hitch. The strike was quick and smooth.

What’s your overall take away from working with Stretch Shapes?

Overall, we look forward to working with Stretch Shapes again and would definitely recommend them for your festival or event shade structure needs.