Renowned photographer Rankin has been supported by Fujifilm and others in the production of Performance, a photo book created in response to the impact of the pandemic on London’s West End theatre community during the lockdowns of the last two years.
Fujifilm provided the GF100 medium-format digital camera used by Rankin to photograph not only the actors but producers, directors and the usually-unseen backstage staff who make London theatre a reality, using studio space at the Fujifilm House of Photography in Covent Garden, while a short run of copies were printed on the JetPress B2 inkjet press at Emerson Print, with the balance printed offset using Fujifilm Superia plates.
At a panel discussion held to mark the launch of the book at the House of Photography, Rankin commented on the snowballing level of support that the project – which had initially been proposed to him pre-pandemic but dismissed as too complex to organise – gained as it progressed, growing to include partnership with Official London Theatre and gaining funding from the Mayor of London.
‘The momentum was nuts, I don’t think anyone said no,’ he said, adding that he wanted to capture ‘the spirit of theatre, live performance. We need storytelling, it’s more important than ever,’ he said.
Andy Kent, division manager at Fujifilm Graphics Systems, commented, ‘Fujifilm is proud to have been involved with such a unique and exciting project. The technology used to print the books delivers on quality and colour, helping to portray the powerful spirit of the West End as it bounces back from the pandemic.’
The book, whose sale proceeds are being donated to the Theatre Artists Fund and selection of London charities for the homeless, is part of a larger ongoing project under the same Performance banner, which includes a free-to-visit exhibition at the House of Photography which is on until the end of 2021. The images at the exhibition were printed on an Epson SC7500 printer using Fujifilm Lustre paper.
