Konya Tropical Butterfly Garden

Europe’s largest butterfly sanctuary can now rival the color spectacle of its insects after receiving an LED makeover by Color Kinetics.

The Tropical Butterfly Garden and Insect Museum of Konya in Turkey has installed a computer-controlled LED lighting system that allows it to glow in millions of different colors.

The park’s main building – constructed in the shape of a butterfly – has now become a prominent feature on the city’s night skyline.

The museum is home to more than 6,000 different butterfly species and 20,000 tropical plants, and features the largest indoor butterfly flight area beneath its wing-shaped dome.

Museum managers said they chose Philips’ dynamic lighting so they could mimic the myriad colors and changing life cycle of the butterflies on display. The LED system also allows the park to drastically reduce its environmental impact and energy bill as it is far more efficient than conventional lighting.

Uğur İbrahim Altay, Mayor of Selçuklu Municipality – which commissioned the project – said: “The Tropical Butterfly Garden is one of the most important iconic symbols of Konya. The LED lighting system and fixtures have added value to the silhouette and visuality of our city.”

The project used a combination of ArchiPoint iColor Powercore, ColorReach Compact Powercore (now specified with ReachElite), and ColorBlast Powercore luminaires to illuminate the butterfly sanctuary.