Project Overview
They say it isn’t over til the fat lady sings. But at eskimo, we know that’s where it all begins. Opera Australia is 60, and the old Dame wanted to show that she’s still young at heart. We looked at OA’s program for 2016 and asked ourselves “what brings people to the Opera?” It’s the agony and the ecstasy, the strangeness and the intensity. Working with Georges Antoni, we broke away from the established mould of showing singers on stage and reimagined opera for a new audience. The result is a symphony of colour, movement and flourish that brings these beautiful works to life.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Design Director: Zoe Pollitt
Creative Director: Mary Talato
Art Director: Elizaveta Pogossov
Lead Designer: Caroline Hunter
Designers: Graziela Machado, Giulia Baldini, Sarah Nguyen
Photographer: Georges Antoni
Retouching: Ghinny Lau
Project Brief
Working within Opera Australia’s branding, eskimo was tasked to art direct, shoot, design and produce the subscription brochures for the 2016 Season. The process was thorough — from conceptualisation of the storylines and productions of each opera, dissecting the details alongside the overarching stories, to the technical details of shoot and post-production combined with expressive typography and layout to create a vibrant publication for the new season.
Project Innovation/Need
Opera inherently sets up worlds of imagination and intrigue through elaborate costumes and sets, powerful music, exciting locations and magnetic performers, and our imagery sought to express this entire opera experience. We aimed to challenge old preconceptions and breathe new life into a traditional art form by presenting opera in a more approachable way.
Working alongside revered fashion photographer, Georges Antoni, eskimo combined swathes of colour, magnetic performers and playful compositions to create a suite of images that evoked the mood of each iconic opera with a contemporary twist. The result is a symphony colour and movement that draws the reader into the diverse and dramatic world of opera.
Design Challenge
Tasked with creating conceptual yet accessible visual representations for each play, eskimo’s challenge was striking that fine line between elevated, poetic imagery and something that communicated the opera for the general public. Colour, light, expression and styling all played a part in creating our suite of imagery.
Carmen, our fiery femme fatal, was the hero of the brochure and her presence on the cover was a bold move that scorched the preconception that opera is fusty and dull. Our faceless image for The Barber of Seville took a risk by rejecting the conventional selling point for opera, resulting in the most successful production of the season so far. Turandot was created in collaboration with a CGI artist and retoucher to add another dimension to the static image. Our bright and dynamic images demanded attention and used unprecedented strategies to delight our audience.
Effectiveness
The creative direction of Opera Australia’s 2016 season has revitalised the perilous art form and challenged the widely held belief that opera is boring, intimidating and fusty entertainment for the rich. Our images successfully reflected the bold productions that Opera Australia have produced. We created excitement about the famous stories while breaking away from the expected approach to delight a new audience.
As a result of the subscription brochure:
– Sydney subscriptions increased by 10% this year.
– Overall sales for the Sydney Summer season increased 5%.
– The Barber of Seville exceeded its sales target by 31% and the theme executed in the brochure images was used throughout the campaign. For example, moustaches on display for customers to dress up with in the foyers, curly moustaches on the mirrors in the Sydney Opera House bathrooms. These types of activations were hugely successful on social media, showcasing the flexibility and conceptual strength of eskimo's imagery.
Graphic Design - Publication
This award celebrates creative and innovative design in the traditional or digital visual representation of ideas and messages. Consideration given to clarity of communication and the matching of information style to audience.
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