Mister Designer, Or How To Create A Wow-effect Both At A Wedding And On The Direct Line With The President

2023 Author: Amber Richards | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-22 00:24

KVN, "Pelmeni" and "Direct Line" with the President

To my main specialty "production designer" you can add "decorator" as well. I don’t know if by chance, but I have been working with the topic of humor for many years. Since 2000, I have been the main artist of the KVN program, followed by the Ural dumplings and other fun projects. Perhaps, only Comedy Club'om I did not deal with, although, of course, I know all the guys and are friends with many. For me, such a humorous line of creativity is very serious, it is closer to me than, say, the design of political programs or solid corporate events.

“Even my mother is surprised every time:“Is there really a set there ?!”

Each project has a customer, to whom we provide service. This is important to remember. Yes, I do decoration and set design from A to Z, but the main decisions - conceptual, color or taste - are made collectively. Especially when it comes to serious events with the participation of the country's first person. For example, "Direct Line" with the President: everything that you see on TV over the past 10 years has been invented by us together with the production director, lighting designer, and director of photography. I'm talking about the objects that surround the President, including the music stand behind which he stands, as well as the scheme of communication with the call center, etc. "Direct line" - team work, no one dictates to anyone. If I wish, I can add something more modern: light boxes, for example, transparent touchscreen screens, on which the presenter will show something.

It is important that it is beautiful, but at the same time technical and functional. From year to year we build a cozy studio that is conducive to conversation, in which nothing distracts from the main thing. The audience does not think about how everything works from the inside, and this is good. So we did everything right. Even my mother is surprised every time: “How? Is there really a set? " I laugh: "Of course, it's all built - there are a lot of decorations!"

When hands are untied

Wedding is a special genre. You get the opportunity to realize things that you will never think of anywhere else. And it is very important to listen to the customer - first of all, the bride. Of course, this is a holiday for two lovers, but I'm still more on Her side. It is the girl who seeks to make dreams of beauty come true, and the groom, of course, will be happy if she likes it. At least I have not heard that they argue with the bride. In my opinion, a wedding is a real theater. Moreover, the very luxurious atmosphere that has almost disappeared from the stage is preserved. And, as before, this is a very “hand-made” story. When working with private clients, my hands are free, there is more freedom for creativity.

Wedding fashion comes to the East ─ and this is a unique phenomenon

It is extremely rare that the bride and groom clearly understand what they want. I can start working, knowing only that the bride's dress will be in powdery or champagne shades. This, in principle, is enough to go in the right direction. My task is to come up with a wow effect, create a festive mood.

Fashion in clothing or interior design, as a rule, comes to us from the West. We wear Italian or French clothes, we appreciate British and American designers. But wedding fashion comes from the East - and this is a unique phenomenon. Dubai, Lebanon - almost all the names of world-class wedding decorators are collected there. In Russia, this business is strengthening its positions, and we are closely following what is happening in the East. An ordinary wedding in Italy or England is an ascetic, minimalistic decor: there are just tables, flowers in vases. Well, maybe ribbons on the trees are the maximum. An exception is when people from the East celebrate a wedding in Europe. Or Russians. Our brides and grooms often travel to Nice, Rome or Sardinia to celebrate an event there.

All the fun is happening in the United Arab Emirates. The wedding business is especially strong there. And it's not about oriental popular prints, but about stylish design solutions. The American Preston Bailey remains a great authority in the wedding business, he was one of the first to set the design of private events on a grand scale. But still, now this is a man of age, and his work is not so "wow" in comparison with Arab stories.

If a couple dreams of spending a day or two in a magical world, so be it

Yes, of course, in the wedding theme everything is very individual. Today, many successful, famous people choose minimalism and extrapolate this trend to one of the most important events in life. Some people ask for a very ascetic holiday. Right now I am doing one such wedding: glowing lines, cubes, a large screen instead of a young table … But still, these are exceptions. Basically we want to get into a fairy tale. Magic is relevant at all times, and on the days of celebrations we become a little bit children. And the decor will be lush or not - depends on personal taste. Sometimes colleagues tell me: "Well, why are you all doing these tales, isn't it time to accustom people to high-tech?" And I think - if young people want to, I have no right to persuade them. If a couple dreams of spending a day or two in a magical world, so be it.

What do the tastes of the young look like today? Thirty percent of grooms and brides still prefer the classics. Fifty percent - modern style with classic elements. And the rest are pure hi-tech. If I were arranging a holiday for myself, I probably would not have chosen any of these three destinations. Something simple, cozy and calm is closer to me. From flowers - burgundy roses. By the way, a wonderful decorator tool is dynamic light. One that instantly sets the mood and is able to completely transform any room. If you don't have time to prepare, you don't have to build any decorations: just put on the necessary equipment and make the correct lighting score.

Technologies with real touch effects: you touch the petals and do not understand whether they are artificial or not

Flowers are still loved in Russia: hydrangeas, roses, dendrobiums - they are the basis for the floristry of the wedding industry. This is not a fashion - they are convenient to work with. Orchids, or phalaenopsis, give the event a status, these are "rich", expensive flowers. I like exotic branches of corilus and also protea, which looks a bit like a thorn. And the large, "structural" hydrangea caps immediately fill the space. But we also use artificial flowers - they allow us to create huge flower ceilings, fill the space of the walls. When such large volumes are needed, natural plants simply will not survive, because installation can take a week. Now there are excellent technologies with a real touch effect: you touch the petals and you don't understand whether they are artificial or not. But fresh flowers are an absolutely necessary attribute, because they give a smell. The person entered - and immediately found himself in the correct aura. I am currently preparing one June wedding with a lot of peonies. You haven't seen anything yet, but you are already looking forward to a wonderful story thanks to the scent, right? You see how important it is for the interior to "breathe".

Ahead ─ San Remo and Oscar

In my opinion, exotic locations are no better than ordinary ones. There are about a hundred people in my team, we work all over the world: from the Persian Gulf to the Baltic islands near St. Petersburg. And I can tell you that for a decorator there is nothing better than a white or black laconic space - an ideal canvas for an artist, full scope for imagination. By the way, in Moscow many events take place in just such a hall - in the Barvikha Luxury Village. Inside it is just a black "box" that gives me the opportunity to express myself. Recently, at one of the Moscow weddings, we staged a voluminous story called "Dawn in the Mountains." Everything worked out - both the sun and the rocks! And two years ago they invented a magnolia garden, where each flower shone from the inside. At the wedding of Sarina, daughter of Mikhail Turetsky, we made a whole alley of flowering trees, a crystal ceiling,and a futuristic wave was sent down the wall behind the VIP guests. Six months of preparation, but the event is still being discussed.

The assessment of my work is important to me, but even when people don't say anything after the holiday, it's good. After all, if you don't like something, they will probably say. But there are clients who call to thank, already from their honeymoon trip. It's nice. It means that what I dreamed of has come true.

If you look at the professional horizons … I would probably gladly decorate an Oscar ceremony or a respectable music festival, San Remo for example. There are plans to open a branch of the company in Italy. I consider Italians to be the trendsetters in scenography. If you come to Italy and turn on the TV, you will see those designer finds, which will then be copied. It is these ambitions that inspire.

Photo: archive of press services