Vinny

Personal information

Profiel

I am inspired by the physicality of light. Light is energy, an elemental force of great creative power, and I am keen to harness its ability to shape and transform space and time in my designs. Working in time based arts, it falls to the light to seize the moment, to create a living, changing environment in which to make a performance. With light in nature, its strength is underlined by a simple beauty; a completeness, which is derived from the clarity of its function. It is this clarity of function that I try to apply in my work; the function of light being to illuminate the journey of a piece, as opposed to illustrate it; giving light a formative role in the performance space rather than a decorative one.

I am interested in creating light that is so integrated with a performance, that it couldn’t be any other way. I try to create light that is necessary; engaging in a process where by through the search, discovery and development of a piece, you discover the form of the lights. For me the process of making a light design is as important as, and greatly influences, the resulting design. I aim to use light to create an environment in which the development, as well as the execution, of a performance can occur; where the development of the concept and direction of a piece occurs hand in hand with the development of the stage and lighting concept, each element inspiring the other and working together to produced an integrated whole.

Coming from a background as a performer, I am keen to explore the ability of light itself to tell a story and harness its narrative and emotive qualities. I like to explore the dramaturgical qualities of light and lighting, with each lamp having its own story to tell. For me the choice and placement of armature remains very much a scenographic as well as a technical one, where the form of the lights contributes to the stage image as well as the light they produce. I came to the role of light designer through hetveem theater, a werkplaats and production house for contemporary mime theatre, and see very much the influence of this visual theatre style, where meaning is often conveyed through images rather than text, on how I see the role of light in a performance.

Working on image based location theatre with the company Dogtroep greatly broadened my vision as to what it means to work with lights. In a Dogtroep production lights didn’t only light a scene, they could also be used as the starting point in the creation of a scene. To create light objects, put them in the hands of an actor, workshop ideas and incorporate that material into the script, broadened my thoughts on the possibilities of light, it’s role in the process of theatre making and what it means to work collaboratively.

I see in my work the desire to make a connection with the space. From this I can also trace the influence of location theatre; where the light design is inspired by and can evolve as a direct response to the space. I try to use the existing infrastructure or objects to place the lamps, rather than imposing a technical structure on the space, and choose or make lamps that fit with the site. This allows the location to form the lighting concept, as it does the performance. I feel I bring this way of thinking with me when I work in theatres, trying to see the whole stage as a location, and lights as an integrated part of the stage image. I am also interested in the possibilities to bring these qualities to the lighting of public and architectural spaces.

I have been looking for some time for an opportunity like that which Instituut Lichtontwerpen provides, a coachingstraject specifically for light designers to deepen my process, explore and develop creative expression. I have greatly benefited from a broadening of my understanding of design and development of my ability to think conceptually about light as brought about by my work last year with the Instituut. I have developed an interest in the philosophies of scenography and wish to combine the development of my critical and analytical abilities with a greater awareness of the social, cultural and artistic context within which I practise. I hope that as a light designer I can play a role in the continued process of refreshing the vision of theatre and the way in which it sees and is seen.

Geschiedenis

Lid sinds

4 jaren 18 weken