[Pompano Beach, FL - April 15, 2008] - Vutec Corporation, the video projection screen leader, and manufacturer of ArtScreen^TM, which transforms a plasma or LCD tv screen into a work of art, announced today that it had signed with renowned tropical watercolor artist Jim Holehouse of Tropic Art Design Inc. (www.tropicartdesign.com).

Initially, Vutec will house 35 of the best high resolution horizontal digital images of Holehouse’s work in the gallery section of its website (www.vutec.com). Should purchasers of ArtScreen desire an image from the Tropic Art Design website not currently available through the Vutec gallery, Vutec will arrange through the artist to make it available as a horizontal image.

The oldest of nine children, Jim Holehouse was born in the town of Coshocton, Ohio in 1950. Although interested in fine arts from a young age, he decided to pursue an education in engineering, and later attended the University of Cincinnati. During the grueling winters, Jim had a vision of sunshine, palm covered beaches, and tropical winds. The time had come to leave the Midwest behind.

Jim relocated his life to south Florida, where he attended the Gold Coast sailing school, and then began teaching sailing. As a result, he wound up chartering many trips to the Caribbean and South America. It was during this time that he began an endless fascination with the tropical destinations, the sea, and surrounding architecture. He began working in the watercolor medium, attempting to capture the vivid color, emotion, and spontaneity of the tropics.

All who are familiar with Jim’s work will attest that he has indeed captured that feeling in nearly thirty years of original works. By 1976, Jim and his brothers John and Tom had founded Tropic Art Design in Orlando, FL. Since its inception, Tropic Art has grown to be a fixture in the central Florida art community, one of very few must-see galleries in the area. Jim’s work has been sold and collected for nearly thirty years from tropical art aficionados all over the world, and the value of the paintings from this master watercolor artist has consistently increased each year.

Q&A: Howard Sinkoff, Vutec Corp

Vutec CEO on video market, home theater and training dealers.

Vutec CEO Howard Sinkoff

04.07.2008 - Within the realm of two-piece video systems, Vutec Corp., with its wide selection of products, has annually been one of the industry’s most sought after brands.

Good examples of the company’s unique product lines include its high-gain SilverStar screen, Theater Art Systems and ScreenArt lifestyle products.

The company’s CEO, Howard Sinkoff, recently spoke to CE Pro.

How has video changed over the years?

The video market has changed dramatically since we first entered the market back in the ‘70s. That was during the early stages of the red, blue and green tubes [cathode ray tubes or CRT].

Together, the three CRT tubes totaled only 125 lumens of light output. Today, a tiny projector will give you 2,000 to 3,000 ANSI Lumens.

We started with the original high-gain curved screens, which had gains up to 13.2. Over the last four or five years, we have developed a product we named SilverStar, which is a high-gain, high-definition flat screen with a gain of 6.0 with some new patented technology.

The SilverStar screen produces very high contrast, vivid colors and extraordinary detail.

We’ve become quite well known for the product.

It’s used in ambient light or controlled lighting, and it’s probably considered a green product today since you can run a projector at less than full brightness.

What industry trends has Vutec recently addressed, and how?

For the dedicated home theater, we’ve added many products. These products have many “bells and whistles,” with remote controls and masking systems (horizontal masking, vertical masking or the combination of both).

The dealer can request a broad range of products for almost any application. All of our screens are also offered on a custom order basis.

Another area is the undedicated theater. This is a very important new area of business. Not every household has a room that can be dedicated for just a theater and some people are not videophiles.

We’ve come up with a number of products for this category. We have a new product that we introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and at CEDIA last September. We call it Theater Art Systems.

Theatre Art Systems transforms virtually any room into a home theater and it speaks to an increasing consumer demand for versatility and beautification.

It’s a combination of three different Vutec products that includes canvas art-a SilverStar screen at a 2.35:1 aspect ratio for CinemaScope presentations-and also a motorized masking system, which brings it down to a 16:9 format.

Then, we have our motorized ArtScreen, concealing the screen when it’s not in use along with a large selection of Giclee fine art prints of the customer’s choice or custom photographs inside a hardwood frame.

How much of the company’s strategic development is based on dealer feedback?

We listen to our dealers very carefully. They’re out there in the field and we regard their feedback as extremely important. In fact, we seek them out to see what they’re encountering in the field.

A lot of the product modifications we’ve developed have really been the result of dealer feedback.

There has been a growing emphasis on 2.35:1 aspect ratios. How is Vutec addressing this particular trend?

We offer almost every screen variety in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio. It’s in all of our masking systems in the Vision X product line.

We’re unlimited with 2.35, 16:9 and we can even do a double masking, where we take 16:9 down to 4:3.

How is Vutec training its dealers on things like aspect ratios, throw distances, resolutions and other calibration elements?

We’re very proud of the fact that we are the first screen manufacturer to offer onsite factory training at our facilities. In fact, we promote our two-day training sessions to all of our authorized dealers.

All they have to do is come down to South Florida in January. We put them up on the ocean and they can even enjoy other activities, such as swimming. We have a very intensive and interesting two-day training seminar.

For those who can’t fly in, we offer Internet training. This training is a live two-way communication on a regular basis. We’re constantly sending them updates by e-mail or “snail mail.”

What are the most effective ways to sell Vutec products?

We provide dealers with demonstration products so they can actually make comparisons with competing products or show the end-user the difference between the different types of screens and screen surfaces.

Vutec Adds Palette Knife Artist Behrens to Its ArtScreen Offerings

Selected works from renowned artist Howard Behrens will soon be available as part of Vutec’s TV concealing ArtScreen systems.

Howard Behrens’ Lake Como Landing will be among the selections Vutec will offer

April 03, 2008 | by Arlen Schweiger

Anyone familiar with Howard Behrens knows the vivid beauty the renowned palette knife artist brings to his landscapes. Screen manufacturer Vutec certainly does, and the company is adding Behrens work to its line of motorized ArtScreen offerings.

For those who may not know about ArtScreen, it’s a decorative piece that you can use to hide your flat-panel TV when it’s not in use. The TV is concealed by a framed canvas, with many choices available in types of frames and types of artwork. When the TV is off, the canvas lowers and the TV disappears.

Adding to the wide array of works from contemporary and popular artists, Vutec’s initial Behrens’ images will include: Amalfi Sunset, Blissful Burgundy, Hotel California, Stairway to Carlotta, Sunlit Stroll, Table for Two-Capri, The Colors of Giverny, Lake Como Landing, My Beloved, Portofino Harbor, Varenna Villa, and Village Hideaway.

Along with a traditional screen, other versions of the ArtScreen are available include ArtScreen Cinescape for front and rear video projection screens, and ArtScreen SoundScape 360 that feature an accompanying soundbar.

Arlen Schweiger
Managing editor of Electronic House, EH Publishing
Arlen contributes product news items to electronichouse.com along with his role on the print publication.

“I can’t stop talking about ArtScreen. When you’re not watching tv, rather than stare at a blank flat panel TV screen, here’s a chance to appreciate a fine piece of artwork of my choice that quietly rolls up or down with the click of a remote. ArtScreen enhances the décor of your Great Room, bedroom, den, lobby - anywhere in the home - including my own home! What a brilliant product. I absolutely love ArtScreen!”

Tony Orlando resides and entertains in Branson, Missouri, the major entertainment center. Tony also wows audiences with gigs around the country, including Las Vegas. He still helps host The Jerry Lewis telethon each Labor Day, and is a close friend of Mr. Lewis. He is currently featured on tv commercials promoting NutriSystem with coast-to-coast spots, having lost 100 pounds with the diet meal plan system.

Tony has acquired an ArtScreen for his home in Branson.

John Orloff is the Emmy nominated screenwriter of HBO’s “Band of Brothers.” He also wrote the screenplay for “A Mighty Heart” starring Angelina Jolie.

For the past 25 years Mr. Behrens has had a romance with the sun. From the idyllic lakes of Italy to the intimate gardens of New England, the artist has danced with her, chased her, seen her in her many different moods. Behrens’ motivation comes from his strong passion to capture the “essence” of the places he visits around the world. The artist has been influenced by Monet, Van Gogh and Nicola Simbari, the Italian palette knife artist.

Using the palette knife, Behrens captures not only the softness of clouds, but also the boldness of mountains, the vibrancy of flowers, and the strength of water. Behrens moves the palette knife furiously as he applies deep, rich color in many layers to achieve dimension and mood. His skill with this instrument has earned him recognition as America’s leading palette knife artist.

Behrens has had over 150 one-man shows from coast-to-coast since becoming a professional artist in 1980. His works have been on the covers of many art publications and he has been the featured subject of numerous magazines and newspapers. The most recent Behrens’ collectors are former President George Bush and Mrs. Barbara Bush.

On Friday evening, March 14, Vutec hosted a gala cocktail party at the Peabody Hotel, across from the Convention Center. By all standards and all accounts, the party was deemed a smash hit, with hundreds of dealers and industry executives in attendance.

• Sanja Resort Living, Greensburg, Kentucky
• The Audio Video Pros Inc, LaCrosse, Wisconsin
• CYTEXONE, for ArtScreen, New York, NY
• NETEAM AVI, for ArtScreen, Cleveland, OH

Another section in Vutec’s ArtScreen^TM Gallery, entitled “Fine Art Originals,” will include such artists as: James Davis, Peter Fowler, Barbara Scalia, Hap Willard and Michael Petringa.

“I am absolutely blown away by this screen,” wrote Orloff in an online review in the AV Science Forum.

Here are excerpts of his commentary:

“I am a professional filmmaker…and have extremely high standards (and a degree of knowledge) regarding the technical expectations of theater-viewing.

“I originally had a (competitive) screen, and was extremely displeased with my luminance…So after much thinking and looking at the posts here, I chose to buy SilverStar, which I have had for about 3 weeks. And I couldn’t be more happy that I did. The difference is day and night.

BRIGHTNESS
“First off, the brightness difference is amazing. Significantly brighter. Way brighter.
Crazy brighter. In a good way. Even with the lamp at “low” position and the brightness at
a lower setting, the screen is very bright.

AMBIENT LIGHT
“I am quite impressed how well this screen does handle ambient light.

COLOR
“Fantastic. The colors pop in a way that was unexpected. Old Technicolor films particularly stand out. I went to UCLA film school, and had the luck to see so many great films projected in ideal circumstances. The Technicolor reds and purples that the Silverstar creates are just gorgeous. Truly, I have never seen those rich tones so accurately reproducted in a non-film theater before. Until this screen, that is.

CONCLUSION
“You can tell I’m a fan of this screen….With the SilverStar, I have been on “low” for the first 200 hours of my new bulb. I’m hoping to stay on low for awhile before I switch to “high” mode, thereby increasing its life. Everything I have read makes me think my bulb will last longer with this screen.

“Anyhow, you get the idea. I highly recommend this screen.”

For more information on SilverStar, visit this link at the Vutec website:

http://www.vutec.com/Products/Vutec_Fixed_Frame_Screens/SilverStar