Stately home festivities set to wow visitors with technical wizardry
GOSSIPING PAINTINGS, chatting crockery and singing miniature statues.
These are just some of the examples of the wondrous technical wizardry on show at Harewood House as part of its festive celebrations this year.
Visitors to Christmas at Harewood: A Night at the Mansion, are welcomed into this enchanting world where household objects and stories come ‘alive’ through intricate and elaborate visual and audio projections that combine to create an immersive, afterhours experience at the historic country house near Leeds.
The festive experience, which starts tomorrow and runs for the next six weeks, has been created by Hull-based multimedia artists Studio McGuire, run by Davy and Kristin McGuire.
Among the rooms involved are
From top, Davy and Kristin McGuire in one of the festive rooms at Harewood House; Kristin in the Pastry Room.
the library, where a large dolls’ house in the centre of the room is brought to life in a series of miniature scenes, and the pastry room, where pots and plates start chatting on the shelves.
Ed Appleyard, Harewood
House director of engagement, said: “It crosses the boundaries between digital work, theatre, installations and projections and brings it all together in something that really is very special.”
The couple, who use digital illusion techniques together with theatre, fine art and moving image, moved to Hull last year following the success of their hugely popular Micropolis installation during Hull’s stint as UK City of Culture.
Their work includes the world’s first projection mapped pop-up book, The Icebook ; an atmospheric stage adaptation of a popular fantasy novel, and window displays coming to life at Barney’s Department Store in New York.
Their critically acclaimed theatrical projects have toured to more than 60 different countries.
■ Christmas at Harewood: A Night at the Mansion, runs from tomorrow until January 5 at Harewood House. For more information about tickets and prices go to www.harewood.org