PRESS ROOM STORY
HARMAN PHOTO SPONSORS ALEX THOMSON & HUGO BOSS YACHT EXHIBITION
20th March 2008
HARMAN PHOTO SPONSORS ALEX THOMSON & HUGO BOSS YACHT EXHIBITION
Pioneering inkjet brand supplies paper for high-profile exhibition featuring images of Barcelona World Race contender
HARMAN PHOTO, the pioneering inkjet brand of leading imaging specialist, HARMAN technology Limited, is sponsoring a unique exhibition featuring images of the HUGO BOSS race yacht.
The shots - taken by Jonathan Glynn-Smith, an acclaimed photographer whose work is more normally found on the fashion pages of magazines such as Harper’s Bazaar and Esquire - tell the story of the state-of-the-art yacht’s build and launch. This process, which set out to develop the ultimate marine racing machine, employed cutting edge design and took more than ten months and 27,000 man-hours.
Images have been captured by Jonathan at various stages and across a range of different and diverse locations - including Lymington in Hampshire where the sleek, 60 foot yacht was constructed, Hamburg where she was officially launched and Gosport where she usually berths.
In addition, there are various shots of ‘Hugo Boss’ as she sets out on some of her first voyages, including the famous Rolex Fastnet Race and the inaugural Barcelona World Race. She is crewed by owner/skipper Alex Thomson - a major talent in international yachting, having been the youngest ever skipper to win a round-the-world race and who at 33, already has two world speed sailing records under his belt. For the Barcelona race, Alex is joined by
Whitbread and America’s Cup veteran, Andrew Cape.
For the 40 print exhibition, which appears at London’s Eight Club opposite the Bank of England throughout March before travelling to Germany, HARMAN PHOTO has supplied two of its papers. The first, its GLOSS FB AL was launched to international acclaim in 2007. Like all the products offered by HARMAN PHOTO, it employs real photo fibre Baryta (the same technology which is used on the MULTIGRADE™ premium silver gelatine papers produced by HARMAN PHOTO sister brand ILFORD PHOTO) to offer superb detail and definition, an extended tonal range and excellent archival properties. This, combined with the paper’s 320gsm weight, gives it a look and feel that’s incredibly similar to a traditional photographic print.
The second paper being supplied is the HARMAN PHOTO GLOSS FB AL WARMTONE. This brand new paper is due for public launch in late February 2008 and offers all the benefits of the GLOSS FB AL together with a warmtone tint - making it ideal for photographers looking to create black and white prints with creamy whites and velvety blacks.
This is Jonathan Glynn-Smith’s first experience of both papers and his views are nothing but complimentary. He says: “I’ve been trying for 15 years to perfect a colour print that offers the same sharpness, depth and unsurpassed permanence of a traditional darkroom print, even going so far as to use certain dye process where each print comes at an exorbitant cost. Finally though, I have found the solution I was looking for. The HARMAN PHOTO papers are absolutely amazing. The resulting prints are the best I’ve ever seen. The contrast range is exceptional and the colours are so deep and so rich. Basically, the quality is just stunning.”
Touch Digital, Jonathan’s choice of supplier for the exhibition prints, has been equally impressed. Speaking for the company, which provides lab services for fine art exhibitions, leading advertising agencies and high fashion magazines, owner Graeme Bulcraig said: “This is the first time we have seen papers that truly match the quality of prints from the darkroom. They offer good depths of black and the ink adheres so well, it feels like it is actually in the paper. There’s also very little metamerism and bronzing. Plus, both papers are competitively priced and easy to handle. They don’t scuff and can be cut quite effectively.
He continues: “The control we have working with digital files coupled with the quality of the HARMAN PHOTO GLOSS FB AL papers allows us to achieve exceptional results.”
A selection of the HUGO BOSS Sailing and Alex Thomson images captured by Jonathan will eventually feature in a book.
For more information on Jonathan Glynn Smith, visit: www.jonathanglynnsmith.com
For more information on Alex Thomson or HUGO BOSS Sailing, visit: www.alexthomsonracing.com
For more information on HARMAN PHOTO, visit: www.harman-inkjet.com
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For more information on this story, please contact Wayne Mohammed or Fiona Shackleton at Manifest on
01484 469601 or email wayne@manifestcomms.co.uk / Fiona@manifestcomms.co.uk
Image: Hugo Boss 1, 2 and 3.jpeg. IMPORTANT – All images must be credited © 2008 Jonathan Glynn Smith
Caption: HARMAN PHOTO Sails ahead. Leading inkjet brand sponsors unique sailing exhibition by Jonathan Glynn-Smith
NOTES TO EDITORS –
HARMAN technology Limited is a pioneering imaging specialist based in Mobberley, Cheshire. The company - which was born of the ILFORD formed by Alfred Harman in 1879 - now includes three, separate and well known brands: ILFORD PHOTO which manufactures traditional monochrome photographic products; HARMAN PHOTO which produces a range of high-end inkjet media for both colour and monochrome prints; and KENTMERE PHOTOGRAPHIC which produces a range of photography and inkjet papers, including Opaljet.
The ILFORD range of inkjet products, including ‘ILFORD Galerie’, is not associated with HARMAN technology in any way, and is actually manufactured and marketed by a separate organisation based in Switzerland.
For more information on HARMAN technology and its brands, visit:
www.harmantechnology.com // www.harman-inkjet.com // www.ilfordphoto.com // www.kentmere.co.uk
About Jonathan Glynn-Smith
Jonathan Glynn-Smith started his career over 15 years ago shooting reportage and album covers for the music industry. Editorially, he began working for The Face magazine, the most ‘on trend’ title at the time, but soon developed a more sophisticated and recognisable photographic style that has kept him very much in demand to this day.
Well known for his incredible use of light and understanding of movement, Jonathan has the ability to turn his hand to almost any subject and his vast portfolio spans from fashion shoots to travel reportage, from high end sports and cars to portraiture.
With his creative experience and expertise, Jonathan is often requested to work alongside companies on creative projects. At the beginning of this year he concluded an eight year partnership with Louis Vuitton for the LV Cup, culminating in a much publicised photographic exhibition at the Espace Louis Vuitton in Paris. Jonathan is currently working on a three year project for Hugo Boss and their Sailing Team.
About Alex Thomson
· Alex Thomson set a new 24hr solo monohull World Speed Record in December 2008 covering 500.01 nm in 24 hours during the Barcelona World Race
· At 25, Alex Thomson became the youngest skipper ever to win a round the world race - the Clipper Race 1998/99.
· In October 2005 Alex Thomson stepped forward as the only skipper to confirm that he will be racing "3 in 3": 3 grueling round the worlds in as many years: the solo VELUX 5 Oceans in 2006, the inaugural two-handed Barcelona World Race 2007 and the blue ribbon Globe 2008. Unfortunately Alex’s yacht HUGO BOSS suffered keel failure during the VELUX 5 Oceans, forcing him to abandon ship in the Southern Ocean and retire from the race.
Alex has one dream: to be the first Briton to win the Vendée Globe.
About HUGO BOSS
Sailing complements the sponsorship portfolio of HUGO BOSS which already includes Formula 1 (Team McLaren Mercedes), IRL (Penske Racing), Tennis (Davis Cup), Golf and Boxing (Vladmir Klitschko). In sailing, HUGO BOSS gets another platform to demonstrate its fashion competence both on the boat with BOSS GREEN and shore-side with BOSS BLACK. BOSS GREEN provides Alex and the crew with highly functional and technical outfits for all possible weather conditions around the globe while BOSS BLACK will dress the crew for every celebration function in the smartest possible way.
www.hugoboss-sailing.com
Barcelona World Race - Two crew, non-stop.
Start: 11 November 2007, Barcelona
Finish: February 2008, Barcelona
A new two-handed non-stop round the world yacht race starting and finishing in Barcelona, to be held every four years. For the first time this race, the brainchild of Dame Ellen MacArthur's Offshore Challenges Group, saw the world's best professional sailors from both solo and fully crewed disciplines competing against each other in teams of two.
Racing over 25,000 miles over three months across the planet's most hostile and challenging oceans in high performance IMOCA Open 60 monohulls. Never before has a two-handed, non-stop round the world race been staged and there has never been a crewed non-stop round the world race in monohulls. This concept opens up a whole new world of possibilities in the sport of extreme offshore sailing.
www.barcelonaworldrace.com
Vendée Globe - Around the world, single-handed, non-stop, without assistance
Start: November 2008, Les Sables d'Olonne, France
Finish: February 2009, Les Sables d'Olonne, France
The blue ribbon event that launched Dame Ellen MacArthur to fame. 3 months around the world's oceanic wildernesses, alone, non-stop and without any outside assistance. Official supplier of legends since 1989 and run every 4 years since, this epic race has yet to be won by a non-Francophone.
www.vendeeglobe.org
For more information on this story, please contact Wayne Mohammed or Fiona Shackleton at Manifest on
01484 469601 or email wayne@manifestcomms.co.uk / Fiona@manifestcomms.co.uk