Projection events have become increasingly popular as one-off stunts. This is the first example we've seen where the technology has been employed on such a scale, indoors and for a prolonged period, as part of a campaign
Ralph Lauren has been wearing its digital heart on its sleeve of late. Much of this is down to David Lauren (son of Ralph), who as SVP of advertising, marketing and corporate communications is widely recognised as the man who has helped bring the Ralph Lauren brand into the digital age.
Luxury brands were initially a bit slow to embrace digital. Decades of high quality glossy print and expensive live shows were ingrained on the luxury and fashion marketing consciousness.
There was a superior attitude that the quality and equity of a brand spoke for itself, and luxury brands largely ignored the opportunities of digital, save for a few expensive looking flash based websites.
Fortunately this has begun to change, and when Drive Production’s giant horses came crashing through the walls of a German department store to help promote the new ‘Design Your Own’ collection from Ralph Lauren, the fashion brand’s mastery of digital became apparent.
When Ralph Lauren celebrated its '10 Years of Digital' anniversary with an extravagant 4D projection in New York and London in December, it was more a media event than a campaign. But when Ralph Lauren launched its 'Design Your Own' collection at Berlin's prestigious KaDeWe department store, the 8-minute film was re-configured for the indoor location.
'Design Your Own' is a new customisable range of polo shirts. Customers select their colour of shirt, and can then choose their favourite Ralph Lauren monogram, in whatever colour they choose - creating the perfect polo just for them.
The atrium of one of Europe's largest luxury department stores, the KaDeWe in Berlin, has been taken over for the entire month of August, with a bespoke 4D digital arts installation from Drive Productions running six times a day. This is the first time 4D mapping has been used inside a fashion store anywhere in the world.
Powerful architectural projection mapping technology takes the audience on a visual journey, creating the illusion that images of models, products and on occasion polo ponies are literally appearing beyond the walls and floating out into space and towards the audience. The experience featured a new ending, to incorporate the 'Design Your Own' collection,.
At each screening, the atrium at KaDeWe - a large, brightly lit space is turned into a cinematic presentation area in a matter of minutes with the use of a combination of motorised blinds, projection screens and heavy black velvet drapes. The projection area is equivalent in size to six double decker buses.
Drive's motion graphics team created the impression of a building projection on the clean, white interior architecture at KaDeWe by projecting 3D architectural geometry, onto and into which the content of the show had been mapped.
Ben Fender, company director of Drive Productions, commented: "Architectural 4d video mapping is that rare thing - a technique that still has the wow factor - both in terms of the creative and technological possibilities it gives brands and in terms of consumer reactions to it.
But the key factor to the success of this medium is the transformational content where It is now possible to create art installations that act as stand-alone pieces of global advertising- bringing together art technology and in this case 'design your own' fashion into one perfect package."
Ralph Lauren 4D Projection Mapping Show, Berlin
The Official Ralph Lauren 4D Experience - New York
The Official Ralph Lauren 4D Experience - London
