Dale Cihi, of Norwalk, CT’s VideoFilm Systems, Inc., is a happy man.  He has every reason to be.  His business is doing better than ever.  His designs appear on National television and were instrumental in a recent exhibit for Chanel, displaying the art of Marie Maillard.

Cihi’s recent exhibit for Chanel was on display for the past three months at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. In the early design stages, The Museum’s exhibit space posed problems for visual artist Marie Maillard, whose ideas for surrounding visual wallpaper in the exhibit were hampered by low ceilings and structural columns. Thanks to Dale’s innovative placement of a lenseless projector called the NECWT610, and the use of large front surface mirrors, the show was a success and received rave reviews.

Drawing on period pieces by the legendary designer from Chanel’s Archive collections around the world and juxtaposed with the contemporary work of current Chanel House principal Karl Lagerfeld, the Met show examines the history and biographical elements of design that are expressed thematically in Chanel. The themes are especially salient because of Lagerfeld’s interpretations and refinements, and the timelessness of the House of Chanel stands out as a motif of the entire show.

Dale Cihi’s design and fabrication ensured the successful transmission of the shows’ images. CAD drawings and plans guided him through the process of planning, and he chose equipment that would effectively keep cost down and quality up. Large acrylic rear screens were custom cut and sprayed, allowing their transportation through the Museum’s narrow hallways leading to the gallery. He chose to spray Goo System’s rear screen paint to provide a powdery, translucent finish allowing them to accept light projected at the oblique angles and scatter it over a wide field of view. One of the more interesting booths at the Chanel exhibit was the “walk in” booth, where images could be seen on both sides of the screens. While seated inside the booth, guests were surrounded by images projected in 4:3 aspect ratio high definition, using Mac Mini computers to play custom HD transport streams.

Says Cihi, “NEC recommends the image of the WT610 be no larger than 100 inches for the WT610.   By projecting on to a front surface mirror, we were able to cover a 9x10 foot area. Cat 5 signal extenders and automation equipment provided by Hall Research, kept signal distribution costs low.” 

Cihi further points out that, “The WT610 projects light like no other projector, which allowed us to accomplish our goals of wall to wall images, working within the 11’6” ceiling height of the  gallery.”   

In the last year, VideoFilm Systems has installed large screen display systems for Fox 5, MSNBC, ABC, MTV, History Channel, Inside Edition and Entertainment Tonight. 

The original plan for Chanel called for free-standing acrylic cubes, but when the model was developed, this idea was abandoned due to the weight of the acrylic, difficulty in moving the heavy sheets around the museum, and for safety reasons.

The catalog notes for the show point out that the exhibit provides a revitalized spirit and identity for Coco Chanel’s signature work, and throughout the exhibit the historic importance of Chanel is both defined and asserted for the modern woman.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art made Coco Chanel’s work accessible to the 21st Century woman. The surrounding visuals imagined by the designing artist Marie Maillard were made possible by Dale Cihi and his fabrication team at VideoFilm Systems in Connecticut.

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Carla Stockton is a writer/producer and IMAGINE’s Associate publisher in Southwestern Connecticut. She can be reached at carlaatimagine@yahoo.com