Awesome projection mapping by SubSquare

Labyrint is a wonderful video by Belgian artist collective SubSquare. Good visuals + good music = so much win. Now we love a well executed projection mapping project as much as everybody else, but there's always this extra kick when we catch a glimpse of a monitor running Resolume. So if you haven't seen it yet, check out the video, and then read more about the process and the folks behind it in the interview.



Who and what and why is SubSquare?

Subsquare is a Belgian student collective founded in May 2010 by myself, Nick De Vucht and Olivier de Groelard.

We all had the same interests and dreams to start a company that brings more than just one service. We want to bring people together from different fields. I studied Graphic Design & Motion Graphics at the Academy of fine arts in Antwerp. Nick studies Audiovisual Techniques & Film at Narafi in Brussels & Olivier is currently doing Illustration. To our team we've added a Photographer and one more Video - Sound Editor. In the near future we intend to attract more creative individuals to our Subsquare platform.

By combining these studies we want future clients to have all the options available for their projects or events. Currently we bring HD party reviews / Animated Line-up Teasers / Live visual Projections & Video Mapping installations / High Quality Pictures / Videoclips / Graphic design / Motion Graphics & Visual Effects.

Can you tell us a bit about Labyrint? How did the project come about?

I've been Vj-ing for 2 years now and was always thinking about bringing things to the next level, in other words taking the visuals from the screens and into a 3D environment where people can experience the visuals and interact with the sculpture. But I soon realized that all over Europe people were thinking the same and so I became fascinated by this new movement of Video Mapping.

I've always been a fan of Magic tricks, Illusions and Augmented realities. M.c. Escher and Victor Vasarely are just a few of the artists who inspire me.
But when I saw the magical work of Pablo Valbuena a new world opened for me. More options were offered to me, I had more things to explore and more things to discover.

When it comes to art I always love the creative process more than the end result, searching for that one thing that has never done before, struggling to get the best out of an idea. That was my motivation for the Labyrint project and all the projects which i'm currently working on.

Labyrint, the name actually explains the search for techniques of video-mapping.
Just like when people struggle to get through a Maze or a Labyrinth - I had to challenge myself to discover how this process was done.
When I first saw a Mapping sculpture I had no idea how this magic was created. I've done my research but there is nowhere on the internet where you can find a dummy guide to video-mapping. So I thought let this search be the project.

Can you explain a bit about the technical aspects? How did you create the objects, and what software did you use to create the map and the content?

The triangular objects were created in Google Sketchup, unfolded with a sketch up unfold plugin and then projected on A2 Bristol papers so I could trace the unfolded shapes.

When this was completed I've searched for the right shapes and compositions for the sculpture. The Map was created with Adobe Illustrator. Projecting an empty document over the sculpture and tracing it piece by piece with the pen tool. Then I imported this Illustrator document into Maxon Cinema 4D and extruded all the shapes in 3D space. And the magic began when I finally got this digital 3D sculpture. Playing with lights, shadows, materials and other motion graphics techniques in Cinema 4D.

Finally the last stage of the proces took place in an amazing piece of software called Resolume Avenue.

Labyrint was my first video mapping experience - by now I realise that this wasn't the best approach for doing a Map and that there are great plugins and tools available. The one I've been enjoying alot lately is the IR MAPIO plugin ( iRworkshop) for Avenue.



The video shows you rocking out with Avenue and a variety of controllers. What's the setup like?

At my studio I'm using a Mitsubishi HC4000 1080p Projector. All my work is done on a Macbook Pro (2,66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo / 4 gig ram). I'm loading all my visuals into Avenue with an external HD (Lacie D2 Quadra)
through a FireWire800 cable to speed things up.

For my midi controller setup I use a M-Audio Triggerfinger to trigger all the different clips , columns and layers. And for position & rotation, fades and other effects I'm using a Korg NanoControl.



Any other projects we should know about?

Since the Labyrint project I've been involved in more Live performances and exhibitions. I'm currently working on some different Mapping Projects in which I collaborate with music producers. The idea is to bring a full audio reactive and in realtime audio visual performance with the help of software like Quartz Composer, Max for Live & Processing.

But I'm particularly excited about the invitation that I've got from the Get Set Festival in Oporto, Portugal. This will be my first step to an international audience.

Also I will be doing some Summer festivals here in Belgium, Video-mapping is quite unique when it comes to the nightlife in Belgium - Looking forward to this as well.

All these projects will be captured in High Definition by Subsquare Tv and will be published as my new Vj promo video around October 2011. You can also expect some video tutorials and guides to video mapping in the near future.

For any updates on my projects & upcoming tutorials or If you want to follow my work: http://www.facebook.com/pages/VJ-Konstr ... 2364571570

Thank you for all the support and interest in my work.

Posted by Joris on Wednesday June 15, 2011 at 13:24 Tags: Projection Mapping
Comment from GeeEs:

Just Awesome... :!:

respect!

Comment from francoe:

Veeery nice.
Technically too much complicated for a simple mapping.
You can do the same just with a bunch of papers, after effects and a video player (or Resolume and a nanokontrol for fun).

Comment from Basic:

wow that is incredible! so many new ideas to create clips!


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