At the end of 2024 I got the opportunity to put my illustrations to use in a youth opera. For the show ‘Koekjes’ (Cookies) I got to create a world in which the singers would play the opera. In multiple creative sessions with the director these settings evolved. Endless cityscapes, haunting silhouettes, surrealistic clockworks.
The panels developed as I dove in to the textual en musical narrative of the opera piece. Each piece narrowed down to one or multiple acts in the story. The black and white world needed to be uncanny, mysterious, a bit like a maze. Manipulated perspective images created a visual depth. Surreal assets created a world both recognizable and hard to grasp. Al the while shifting illustrations on an overhead projector made the stage feel even more dynamic.
Photos: Ben van Duin
Photos: Ben van Duin
Photos: Ben van Duin
Photos: Ben van Duin
Photos: Ben van Duin
