Direction and Design
TEM
Executive Production
Prodject
Production
Ulla Winkler
Technical Direction
Vincent De Belleval
Fabrication and Electronics
For Rag and Bone SS17, Marcus Wainwright’s first show since the departure of David Neville, Prodject asked TEM to create something unique and ambitious.
Thom Yorke has soundtracked fashion label Rag & Bone’s 2017 Spring/Summer collection show with a new song, “Coloured Candy.”
A virtual environment generated by spinning, motion-controlled projectors immersed designer Marcus Wainwright's Rag & Bone SS17 catwalk show in movement and light.
The Beacons – Painting a VR space with light and kinetic motion
TEM with Vincent de Belleval and Ulla Winkler invented a method to create a virtual environment around a catwalk, to tell a story around Thom Yorke's Coloured Candy, using a dynamic content system piped through a room sized inverted zoetrope, created from three 2.5m tall, 0.5 tonne, 60rpm motorised beacons.
Below is the concept pre-visualisation film.
The beacons become lanterns illuminating a virtual environment that evolves. As the track and content system reach apogee, the beacons create glimpses of another place, for just a few seconds, before track and sculptures lose phase.
The beacons become lanterns illuminating a virtual environment that evolves. As the track and content system reach apogee, the beacons create glimpses of another place, for just a few seconds, before track and sculptures lose phase.
As the track begins the beacons awaken with a familiar voice, reminiscent of OK Computer era ‘Fitter Happier’ speaking text from The Universal Sigh, the free newspaper which accompanied Radiohead’s 2011 album The King Of Limbs.
The phasing kinetic motion of the beacons evolve with the audio to paint the space with light and movement. From an abstract horizon, geometric landscapes through to glitched chocolate box beach scenes, waveform analysis and light.
Using bespoke software, hardware, and a real-time 3D engine, we merge physical and virtual in a glimpse to the future potential of immersive physical installs.
Using bespoke software, hardware, and a real-time 3D engine, we merge physical and virtual in a glimpse to the future potential of immersive physical installs.
Using feedback data from the motors, we align the rotation of virtual cameras in the real time content engine with the physical rotation.
Using feedback data from the motors, we align the rotation of virtual cameras in the real time content engine with the physical rotation.
The faster the projectors spin, the more the illusion of a complete immersive environment is created by the phenomenon of vision persistence.
This kinetic content system allows us to build environments around the models and guests which the motorised projectors sample as they spin, like lighthouses illuminating virtual worlds. It also allows us to use the content infrastructure as a conceptual and sculptural element in the show, instead of hiding it in the shadows.
Bold and ambitious, like the fashion house it supported.