Blitz Communications has been commissioned to provide the technology to bring the design concept to fruition. The installation takes the form of a curtain made from 5,600 silicon rods, 8.1m high, creating an 18m diameter 360 degree canvas for film, live performance and audience interaction.
Blitz installed 12 Barco RLM W8 projectors which are mounted on the truss ring above the silicon rod curtain. Each of these projects a portrait image 8.1m high by 5m wide, overlapped to produce a seamless 360 degree display at 13,520 by 1,920 pixels.
Media delivery and control is implemented using 12 Dataton Watchout display PCs networked to a Watchout control server. Whilst the artist's works have been created at the above resolution and loaded onto the Watchout system, there is also provision for twelve HD SDI external video feeds as part of the programme which features a 360 degree live video input via six HD cameras.
A separate 6m diameter control area has been created using 12 Panasonic HD 20 series plasma screens, allowing the operator to monitor the live content remotely.
Paul Hutton, MD of Blitz Communications, comments, "When I first met with Ron, he had installed a test rig in his studio in Chalk Farm Road. He asked if I thought it would work on a much larger scale and I told him that, in theory, it could be achieved. He placed his faith in us and it was our job to deliver a projection and content delivery system that would bring his design idea to life."
Ron Arad says, "When I thought about the design I knew it was going to be different. The Roundhouse is a circular building so the installation had to celebrate this form. I had an idea of how it was going to look but the end result has far exceeded my expectations. It has been a great journey."
In support of this, Fredrik Svahnberg, marketing & communications manager at Dataton says: "This breathtaking 360-degree installation that uses Watchout is simply stunning and we're proud to be involved with our partner Blitz Communications."(Jim Evans)
