Inspiration from the world of large print Special Edition PERFORMING ARTS ZIELINSKI Conveys the sense of the scene BIG IMAGE INFINITUS Premiere at the Opera Festival in Salzburg A GREAT FACE OF THE MISANTHROPE Big picture in the spotlight at the Royal Dramatic Theatre SPECIAL EDITION • PERFORMING ARTS EDITORIAL .........................................................................3 Some words from the Big Chief BIG, BIGGER, BIGGEST ...............................................4 Infinitus premiere on stage THE HISTORY OF BIG IMAGE .................................7 A dream comes true LITTLE BIG THINGS .....................................................8 Big hello’s from different parts of the world AS YOU LIKE IT… .........................................................10 Zielinski conveys the sense of the scene PUTTING UP APPEARANCES ..............................15 With UV colors and light CIRKUS CIRKÖR ........................................................... 17 A circus with passion A GREAT FACE OF THE MISANTHROPE ......20 The Royal Dramatic Theatre thinks big THE NEVERENDING STORY ................................22 Redesigned for stage BO-RUBEN HEDWALL ..............................................23 Set design from the seventh floor BIG LITTLE MUCK ......................................................28 An old fairytale in a new manner READY TO ROCK ..........................................................30 Backdrops made for a gigantic show WIDE FORMAT PRINTING ON SOFT MATERIALS BIG IMAGE is currently one of the most experienced manu- facturers of large image communications in the world, and specializes in images printed on soft, flexible material. We have extensive knowledge of the technology, craftsmanship and artistic expression. Big Image has customers all over the world. From big cities to small towns. On Broadway or at your wedding. On a downtown facade or on the wall in your conference room. Whether you need an image of a few square meters or want to drape an entire department store BIG MAGAZINE IS PRINTED ON COCOON (100% RECYCLED PAPER) as a giant cake, we have the expertise to get the job done. AND HAS BEEN CLIMATE COMPENSATED. DESIGN: BROR RUDI CREATIVE BIG IMAGES ARE OUR PASSION here is nothing we like better than when unexpected solutions, are things we try to do T we are challenged by our customers, “Are today as well. you sure you can produce an image that is 200 For several years now, we have had exten- square meters in size, round like a football that sive collaboration with our German subsidia- can be used both indoors and ry and the Technical University out, is quick to assemble, easy of Berlin to develop and build to store and ready for delivery “The position our new large printing mach- on Friday?” Well, questions ine known as Infinitus. The regarding projects like this that Big Image machine is now in production of various sizes are common holds today is just and we are so happy about it for our skilled project mana- that we could burst with joy! gers and sales staff – and in what our founder Watching images of 12 meters principle, we always accept dreamed of almost wide by any length (the record the challenge! It doesn’t mat- so far is 38 meters) coming off ter if the project is only a few 30 years ago” the machine, completely seam- square meters of printing for less, is a fantastic feeling – truly a basement theater or several a dream come true! thousands of square meters for a world-famous If you have any questions or ideas on what opera house – it’s the passion for creating vi- we can do better – please contact me by e-mail: sual experiences with large format images and [email protected] working together with our clients that drives us forward. The best ideas and the most un- conventional solutions will always come from close dialogue with the customers. The position that Big Image holds today is just what our founder, Werner Schäfer, drea- med of almost 30 years ago – and he dared to follow his dream! To trust our instinct, to be proud of the passion we have for the large Andreas Skantze image industry and to find unconventional, managing director big image LUCIO SILLA – THE OPERA Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was merely 16 years old when he received the commission for the opera seria in 1771. The wunderkind portrayed the Roman dictator Lucio Silla and his historically proven withdrawal. The plot was written by Giovanni di Gamerra: It is the year 79 before Christ. Silla wants to force Guinia into marriage, although he has had her father execu- ted and despite the fact that Guinia actually loves Cecilio. The happy end: Silla shows mercy and allows the lovers to marry. The Roman withdraws and restores the Republic. BIG, BIGGER, BIGGEST It is well known that quantity is not always the same as quality. But in this case it is: The first Infinitus print impressed during the Mozart Week in Salzburg with a large degree of seamless class. And Mozart’s “Lucio Silla” also caused a stir for other reasons. TEXT /// BIRGIT HIEMANN TRANSLATION /// BIG IMAGE PHOTO /// MATTHIAS BAUS, WERNER SCHÄFER, STUDIO BABELSBERG. BIG, BIGGER, BIGGEST as ever there were forceful vocal sounds, of a painting. Details can be added or remo- an exquisite team and stars such as Rolando ved and the colouring can be altered. “For Villazón, Olga Peretyatko and Marianne Cre- three years we’ve been working on transfer- bassa. And yet everything was different at the ring the quality of theatre painting to the di- opening opera of this year’s Mozart Week. gital world, with its ideas of time and cost,” As soon as the Mozarteum Foundation in explains Kern. Also with Big Image. Salzburg emits the first cultural drum roll For the printing professionals, this contract of the year, cultured tourists and locals can expect the works of classical artists, prima- rily of course the city most famous son. In the past these works have been interpreted “Creative heads like with gusto by international stars in a con- Schäfer and Müller have temporary manner. Directors’ theatre, you could say. This year the Canadian director enabled a future for us.” Marshall Pynkoski served up something different: “Lucio Silla”, an early work by was a superlative one in many ways. Mozart Mozart in the style of the 18th century, with Week – an event of international renown, painted views and baroque costumes. the Salzburg Festival – a respected custo- This is how it was described by the press: mer with the highest standards of quality, Pynkoski’s “sentimental staging in the pre- 766 square metres of material of many dif- cisely painted and built architectural pano- ferent colours – the first giant print on Infi- ramas by Antoine Fontaine, lit often only in nitus. Everyone at Big Image was aware of a subdued manner from the ramp by Hervé the importance of the premiere print, and Gary, looks like an old engraving and yet for Salzburg it was a matter of trust. “We constantly interrupts the apparent historical have been working together successfully for suggestion.” ten years. We appreciate the quality of the pictures, the trained eye of the staff. So why “The art of stage painting forms the foreground.” Those who wish to stage historical work as close to the original as possible rely on the precision and craft of the stage painters, who place the brilliance and the power of great paintings in the foreground, while kno- wing the limitations of art. Pynkowski and Fontaine’s team, when designing the backd- rop with Roman columns, bucolic landscapes and cloud horizons, decided to use a mix- ture of painting and reproduction. Martin Kern, head of visual media at the Salzburg INFINITUS – THE WORLD PREMIERE Festival: “Painting a horizon that is 11 x 23 Three years of development and an investment of 500,000 Euro has been metres not only exceeds our spatial and fi- placed in the world’s largest textile printer. Together with the Technical nancial possibilities. One can paint in sec- University of Berlin, the team also constructed a calibration system, with tions, certainly. But this produces ugly seams which the material is stretched as straight as a dye from the printing roller. that become visible when lit from behind.” The art of reproduction: Stage painters Infinitus prints pictures to a maximum height of twelve metres and a width of 50 metres on textile without a seam. This also makes Big Image ideal for complete a picture on a small scale, which is the American market, with its oversized stages. The main customers are then – piece by piece – photographed, digi- opera houses, theatres, film and television studios and the event sector. talised, artistically processed and printed on a large scale. This preserves the suggestion SPECIAL EDITION • PERFORMING ARTS 5 BIG, BIGGER, BIGGEST shouldn’t Infinitus do that for which it was built – seamless printing?” At times the crew at Big Image were on the edge of their seats during the development of their innova- tion. No surprise. No less than three years of research and 500,000 Euro in necessary development costs were at stake. Project manager Andreas Paul descri- bes the challenges: “Will the print head withstand the WELCOME! pressure without blurring the colours? How should we deal with different tensions in the picture arising from different depths of colour? And will the transport of the material from the calibration unit to the prin- ting roll work?” Questions upon questions. Naturally they had to learn from a few mistakes. There were slight distortions in the palace picture made from mesh, which only became visible when hung in the “House for Mozart”. The corrected print came quickly. What was decisive, however, was the end result: six pictures on mesh, gauze and untrea- ted cotton. All of which was seamless and with a more intensive and abrasion-resistant colour than ever be- fore. “For the first time we saw the dimension and the potential of Infinitus.