NeoL

Photo by Circus Family

Circus Family is an audiovisual designer group who believe in making unbelievable ideas come to life.Their clientele includes an impressive array of household brands such as KLM and Nike yet their recent work ‘How did I get here?’ is a more personal project, triggering the audience to question and become more receptive to their surroundings by what they do best; combining elements of sound, visuals and technology. They talk to me about their exhibition and what the future of audiovisual technology has in store.

-Your first solo exhibition at De School Amsterdam just finished in early December. How was this project different from all of the commercial work that you do in terms of your creative process since you had more freedom?

Circus Family: This project was unique in many ways as it truly represented what we as Circus Family are about. For the first time many of our local supporters, friends and family were able to see our large scale works to size in real life. This made it very personal and emotional in a way. The location was a perfect fit, the music selection, the people, the food in a way what we are always aiming at is that experience which feels “right” Can be a corporate or a cultural type of “right” but that is what we are good at. We could create that in this project.

-Could you talk us through why you called the exhibition ‘How did I get here?’

Circus Family: We wanted our work presented under a clever quirky not too serious tone of voice. This title is taken from the song by the Talking Heads called ‘Once in a lifetime’ which felt both in text and meaning as in attitude very inspiring. The work by David Byrne is a huge inspiration for our way of working. So all the works within the exhibition were based on their song lyrics. And it happened also the be a very nice capture of the fact that it is our first solo expo.

– How did i get here?
– Into the blue again after the money’s gone
– Letting the days go by
– Same as it ever was
– Time isn’t holding up


Photo by Circus Family

-The objects are receptive to its surroundings meaning the installation comes to life when visitors approach and rests when it is left alone. As storytelling is something important in your projects, was there a specific message you wanted to send off from this exhibition?

Circus Family: The main message with our work is that we aim to have people open up and be receptive to looking at their surrounding in a new way. Wondering what they are looking at, what they are listening to and taking the time to think and wonder. A mix of unexpected combinations in material choice, color and volume help us trigger those emotions. Unexpected combinations to create new experiences and stories.

-You have previously worked with clients from Nike, KLM to artists such as Yellow Claw. Did your past commercial projects help you in any way for the creation of the installation for the exhibition?

Circus Family: Absolutely. That is exactly what we are about. Our commercial projects bring ideas and concepts up and so do our cultural or non commissioned projects. They influence each other and strengthen or elevate and vice versa. Our research and development and learnings from an artwork project can come back in a commercial project. It’s not a must, but just so happens every now and then. And very importantly it makes us happy to do both which you see reflected in the work and the way we work and collaborate.

-In a previous interview you mentioned that working with Djs, musicians and acts have enabled Circus Family to master how ‘the night’ works and is working on investing in ‘the day’. What are the different elements that need to be considered when creating an installation for an exhibition for the daytime compared to a project that will be seen only in the night?

Circus Family: Well it depends very much but in general you could say that people are receptive in a different way during the night to input and experiences and that light as a medium is more powerful in the dark. However taking those night concepts and trying to make them come to life in a daylight setting is a very nice challenge.


Photo by Circus Family

-Could you tell us more about the Solar Mix Table? What kind of brief were you given and how did you approach it?

Circus Family: The brief was quite compact and sent to us by digital agency “Code D’Azur” for their client: Sol Beer. They had this idea of an installation that uses the sun hours during the Solstice Festival in Iceland and have that information trigger the music. The sun as DJ and selector. We took their starting point and decided we wanted to make a machine that actually tracks the path of the sun and uses this information to select playlists and playback order. So truly a standalone system. Pushing the concept to not only look striking but also work and enhance the experience of the Silent Disco dance floor triggered by the SUN.


Photo by Circus Family

-Circus Family is known for making unbelievable ideas become reality. Was there a project in the past that you were asked to execute but was incredibly difficult to bring to life?

Circus Family: Yes quite a few actually. As we are known for making unbelievable ideas become reality almost all requests are custom builds. Sometimes we have elements that are used and well known and tested before but often it ends up being that strange mix of techniques mixed into that concept to make that experience work
One example is the KLM Hologram Bar which was both technically very difficult to execute as well as from a production angle quite the challenge. On three international airports behind security.


Photo by Circus Family

-How did the name Circus Family come about ?

Circus Family: The name came to us as we were a group of freelancers actually already collaborating on various commercial projects in graphic design and film. We were looking for a way to present ourselves more seriously to clients without becoming too stuck in a business model. The idea of an actual Circus consisting of a group of highly talented and outspoken artists travelling the world to show people their magic was the perfect translation. That developed over the years into the studio / collective we are today. Same mentality though

-Who is behind Circus Family? Could you introduce the team and the roles /expertise they all hold within the family?

Circus Family: Absolutely. We are a compact group of fulltimers and work with an extended network of collaborators. Some of them share our studio space. Others on a regular project basis.

Taco Potma – Art Director / Motion Designer
Cas Dekker – Tech Developer / Director / Programmer / Wizard
Lotte Hoeksema – Producer / PM /
Selcya Westen – Art Director / Artist
Wout Westen – Creative Director / Founder

-Out of all of the projects you have done in the past, is there a particular one that you were enamoured by and left an impression on you?

Circus Family: I would say most of the projects leave an impression and they are all very unique and different in the sense that the reactions you get from the audience are so rewarding. The enthusiasm we received after presenting TRIPH for the first time is a special one as that was the first time we showed our “own” work. That to me sharpened our focus and makes us into the collective of collaborators we are today. Acknowledged once more by “How did i get here”. Ready and hungry for more. Another one is the Turbulence exhibition we designed with rapper Sticks, Red Bull and Museum de Fundatie last year. As we noticed the difference we could make with our expertise in how people perceive the concept of art in a museum. Very inspiring to see and also feels like another direction where our expertise comes to fruition.


Photo by Circus Family

You have the job of extracting and combining elements from different mediums to tell stories in unconventional ways. Could you tell us the creative process that you undertake when tackling each project?

Circus Family: We always try to strip the briefing first that comes in. Back to the essence of what the creative idea is. The concept. From there we try to build up an addition to that concept or we propose to shift the concept a bit. We also scan for a visual match. Is the request made for us, can we add to it? And then we start looking into how we can actually execute that request.

-As audiovisual designers trying to understand how people choose to behave and interact with what they see, what have you learnt about our behaviors when we come across moving imagery?

Circus Family: The impact and control you can have with large scale installations and visuals. The power of film or moving images and sound is unlike any other. If you use these elements well people will engage with your work if you truly give them the tools to access it. Take away any technical boundaries and make it as accessible and engaging as possible.


Photo by Circus Family

-VR, Augmented reality to IoT and AI, technology can maximize a human’s potential when used properly. As audiovisual designers I assume technology is a friend rather than a threat but was there any time during a project when technology was not on your side and rather a curse than a blessing?

Circus Family: No not really. As we feel that certain technical options are possible it does not always mean we use them. We like to simplify and make clever use of tech to support an experience. Tech will never overtake that experience. However we did have moments that tech was not as advanced as we had hoped it would be, but we find workarounds.

-Spatial dynamics prove that creative industries tend to cluster. Why do you think Amsterdam attracts so many designers and artists from around the world?

Circus Family: Central location. International crowd. Good living conditions, also with kids. Tax laws that attract large corporations HQ and provide a lot of work. Life is good in Amsterdam compared to a lot of other cities. Not too big but well known.

-Dutch graphic designer Wim Crouwel as well as Dutch artists in the De Stijl movement are famous for being minimalists. But can you in your own words describe what defines Dutch style? Do you think that you can distinguish something as very ‘dutch’ from just looking at it?

Circus Family: I think a lot of creative dutch work is quite pragmatic. Minimalism is something we can relate to but in a lot of “dutch” work i personally miss playfulness and character.

-What is next on the agenda for circus family? Any new upcoming projects?

Circus Family: A lot of plans for 2020. We are currently working with various artists merging music and performance with visuals and installations. Some exciting big corporate work coming up. Maintaining our collaborations with Nike, Red Bull, The Student Hotel, Vlisco. And looking to collaborate more with brands and artists in Asia as we feel there is a lot of expertise we can bring from our side to that upcoming part of the world. Hopefully also a new large scale work unveiled in spring in NYC.


Photo by tdm.space

Circus Family. (est. 2007)
A family of audiovisual designers with a passion for bringing challenging projects to life using graphic design, moving image, music and interactive technology.
circusfamily.com
https://www.instagram.com/circusfamily/