Project:
Printworks
Location:
London, UK
Manufacturers:
Green Hippo
Lighting / Visual Designer:
Richard Bagshaw, Digital Insanity, UK
Project Submitted By:
Green Hippo
Printworks London opened its doors in 2017, making an immediate impact on the London live events scene – it was swiftly voted into the top 20 of DJ Mag’s Top 100 Clubs and has just claimed ‘Best Club’ status in the 2018 Time Out Love London Awards. The building, once Western Europe’s largest print facility, has been transformed into an extraordinary events location, made up of six spaces spread over 119,200 sq ft [11,074 sq metres] with over 40,000 sq ft [3,716 sq metres] of outside space.
While Printworks London is a home for culture generally, electronic music formed a major part of the venue’s 2017 debut schedule – enabling electronic music events of a scale rarely previously seen in the UK capital. One year on, Printworks continues its love affair with the London electronica scene, dedicating two seasons of 2018 – spring and autumn – to holding multiple electronic events.
Digital Insanity used a Hippotizer Karst Media Server to control video. The Printworks control system also counts midi controls and a custom OSC specified by Digital Insanity. The OSC control option is an open-ended network protocol designed to connect musical instruments such as synthesizers together and, thanks to its flexibility, it is a simple way to control Hippotizer from third party devices, such as, and in this case, an Apple iPad. The Hippotizer Karst controlled 17 strips of LED down each side of the room, plus a further eight strips contained in lighting pods. The pods are contained in the venue’s signature Kinesys moving rig technology, a feature reported by DJ Mag as one which has ‘come to define the venue for many’. New LED panels in the electronic space, running content created by Digital Insanity, add even more visual wonder to this awesome space.
The biggest challenge was the canvas’s width as it was 150m wide when flattened: so some of the content was pre mapped. Digital Insanity used several presets some for live mapped and some for pre mapped content.
From a disused print works to a venue already engendering borderline religious devotion from all who visit, its brutally, yet beautifully, exposed interiors, Printworks London is a shining example of how today’s leading video and lighting creatives can play a major part of crafting not just an event, but a happening.
