REVIEW OF 2010 : DAVID CURTIS-RING

David Curtis-Ring, Peacock portrait photography by Christa Holka

I worked with ADAD on the music video Love Part II where we had some great fun with smoke, confetti and sugarglass! In the video there is a moment when a sheet of glass appears to break over Bright Light Bright Light and so while filming this part Alun and I were hovering above Rod with a sheet of sugarglass, poised, waiting for the go-ahead to let it fall! Eek! This felt quite dramatic at the time, to be dropping what seemed to like a piece of glass! We only had two chances to get it right but it worked out really well in the end. The sumptuous collage of textures, lights and varying colours that you can see in the finished piece are among my favourite things about the video!

I'm a London based artist working in set design, costume and props. My practice references mythology, elements of fantasy and mysticism and often features the animal as symbol. I'm interested in creating a striking visual language through an exploration of archetypes and a tactile, colourful and handmade aesthetic. I've just recently finished work on a music video for pop duo Muchuu where I art directed and designed the set and am now beginning a project with fantastic DOP Michel Dierickx.

www.davidcurtis-ring.blogspot.com















Video still from Love Part II by Bright Light Bright Light























Muchuu Set design photography by Fanny Jansen

REVIEW OF 2010

Hello,

2010 was an extremely busy year at AD AD, it was the first year to see so much of our set design work on the stage as well as in print, online and as live installations. Working across fashion and music, we have collaborated with some of my early inspirations (Peaches, Vincent Peters, Willy Vanderperre ) as well as some brilliant up and coming talent (Daniel Sannwald, Charlie Le Mindu, Bright Light Bright Light). It also seemed the perfect time to develop our costume props and accessories taking them to a new level, some touring the world (Lady Gaga) and gaining a whole new audience for our designs.

Some of the highlights I have listed below but the stand-out event for me was the amazing opportunity to travel and work with Peaches in Berlin. I spent almost 2 months working with avant garde recording artist as the production and stage designer for her shocking and brilliant musical opera 'Peaches Does Herself' at the prestigious Hebbel Am Uffer, creating dynamic sets such as a vaginal lipped bed giving birth to the contemporary dancers dressed in fetus style outfits, to oversized set pieces such as an operating table, the Peaches trademark 'Shocker' hand and dancing cardboard trees. The show was a back to back musical of Peaches songs and the imagery followed with props including a specially commisioned exploding dildo by 'Babes-n-Horny', hair arm costume props and many more. The show was sold out for the whole weeks run in Berlin, and was such a success it shall return again in May 2011.

COSTUME PROPS

Another on-stage sucess were the scintillating and mirror ball encrusted dancers costumes for the Lady Gaga Monsterball World Tour, commissioned by Anna Trevelyan for super stylist Nicola Formichetti. Gaga wears dress by Armarni Prive.

EDITORIAL \ CLICK HERE TO VIEW FULL STORIES

In print and online AD AD created editorial art direction, prop design and costume props with stylists and photographers such as Kim Howells for Contributing Editor, Raquel Garcia for Metal Magazine, Yasuhiro Takehisa for Dazed and Confused Korea and Vision Magazine. Markn for Harpers Bazarre, Vincent Peters for Vanity Fair, GQ and InStyle, Daniel Sannwald for Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin and Thomas Lohr for Under Current Magazine.

COMMERCIAL

Commercial shoots and campaigns included Net a Porter, Office, House of Fraser, Lu Flux (Esthetica at LFW) and Waddler Clothing with photographers, Holly Falconer, Jonathan Hallam, Markn and Sophia Spring .

LFW AND BEYOND

Staying in the wonderful realms of fashion we collaborated with milliner Piers Atkinson for his London fashion week installations, creating body contorted mannequins in gloss black, speared with neon tubing for his A/W 2010/11 stand at Somerset House, and golden lacquered bodies with glitter pink Hollywood Hills for his S/S 2011 installation. More recently creating futuristic erotica inspired costume props for his Christmas window display at it-boutique Machine-A, where we had incidentally previously brought to life a themed ‘graveyard for vaginal worship’; a live performance Installation for Machine-A and Charlie Le Mindu, a cardboard graveyard and astro turf lawns graced the Machine-A basement, a body and fountain of hair was suspended as performers writhered in worship on the floor.

MUSIC & MOVING IMAGE

Ongoing artistic direction for Grazia.com’s LFW soundtrack recording artist Bright Light Bright Light, with brilliant projects that included his first music video for single 'Love Part 2', an abstract space was created where two anonymous dancers play guardian to BLBL as cascading shards of glitter and glass attempt to invade his environment. Aswell as lighting and stage design for live performances at Koko London, styling consultant for their show at The Hammersmith Apollo and all current press photography. Continuing In the world of pop, the music video for La Roux's 'Bulletproof ' began a global debut in 2010 and made it into the top ten around many countries in the world including top 5 in US, after brilliant success in the UK in 2009. The video has now been played over 15 million times on YouTube alone! A 'Tron' inspired geometric set design was created by AD AD with post production by Mathematic Studios Paris.FILM & INSTALLATION

The end of year rounded off very chicly with a subtle installation for photographer and video director Jez Tozer for his 'Alchemy Series' launch event. Freshly charcoaled wood was suspended in a lattice across the entrance creating an aromatic, ambient, live trailer to the film screening later to be shown online at SHOWstudio.com, (themes of fire, smoke and fashion), with designer fashion garments by Craig Lawrence and Noki hung in the show space.

2011 is already looking busy with discussions with LA film studios, the release of the feature film 'Wreckers' in early spring and a continuing presence at LFW. I will endeavor to keep you posted!

Happy New Year !!

Alun

Special thanks to all my assistant and collaborators over the past year, Lloyd Rossborough, Kim Morley, Kirri Barker, Erik Nilsson-Gullstrand, Emilia Zieba, Rosie Knowles, Christa Holka, Lynne Morris and everyone else who has been involved with ADAD projects.