/ a r t . s t u d i o
resonance was shown at our solo show at die Botschaft, and is a kinetic sound work composed of suspended tubing, wire, and electronics. a small motor bounces across the open ends of several small tubes at varying speeds, altering the pattern of sounds emanating from the work and vibrating the LED, which pulses with the same frequencies controlling the motor.
still images here
rounded binary was shown at our solo show at die Botschaft, and is a kinetic sound work that has two states: spinning and stationary. when spinning, the tape on the motor creates the illusion of a circle – but changes in speed and direction of the motor produce varying tones and a shadow reveals the tape attached to the shaft to be irregularly shaped. when the motor stops spinning the jagged shape of the tape and lack of sound/motion create the illusion of a static sculptural object.
still images here
we just posted images from our show at die Botschaft, take a look!
new works:
mottetto
quine
inversi
resonance
rapport
rounded binary
video will follow shortly.
we have a show at a private gallery in baltimore, md, called die Botschaft 1628, owned by marcia hart. the show runs until september 23, features 6 new works and is available by appointment only. none of the work is for sale, there was no opening and no hype. we had several salon style discussions and visits with interested viewers.
prior to our show we weren’t aware of people dedicating parts of their homes to occasional, private art exhibits.
the experience has been wonderful. before this opportunity we began the summer developing several works with no idea where they would eventually be shown – happily devoting our time to our work and process. in may we met marcia and visited die Botschaft 1628 and had a few subsequent discussions over the summer that lead to the opportunity.
we structured our time as a residency with an accompanying exhibit. we completed the works begun in our studio on-site, conditioned by the gallery and after the works were completed, were able to spend mindful time with interested visitors and get their feedback. we gave a few gallery talks to small groups and had easy access to the space while managing when visitors would be there. we were able to visit the work privately to look at it installed at different times of the day (the gallery has two large windows so the lighting conditions change dramatically), document and learn from it.
the title we chose for the show was: a silent evocation of the society for private musical performance – a reference to the salon chamber music society of vienna in the early 20th century. that society was designed to permit a diverse array of new concert music the chance to be heard in an educated, critical environment of careful listening and thought (often works were performed twice on the same evening) as a foil to mounting public and journalistic confusion of popular trends, entertainment and privilege with art that were contributing to a harsh environment for the evolution of music as an art form.
our time at die Botschaft 1628 has shown us an ideal exhibition paradigm for our art practice and process, and we’ll leave the gallery focused and inspired. we’re writing about this because there may be others out there who feel similarly, either potential private gallerists or artists and this may serve as an impetus to a deeply rewarding experience.
we’ll be posting documentation of our work here in the coming weeks.
composed of electronics and paper, through continuo is a work for the Brooklyn Zen Center’s No-Eyes Viewing Wall, and part of the Silence and Noise exhibit (April 13-September 29, 2012), co-curated by Noah Fischer and Terence Caulkins.
through continuo is installed on the walls and ceiling of the gallery. the dimensions of the work on the wall are approximately 9’x16′, there are five small piezo speakers coupled with glass mueller tubes suspended from the high ceiling in front of the work by approximately 3′ – one needs to look up to see them. the speakers/mueller tubes occupy roughly the same space as the wall installation. shadows from the components installed in the ceiling (including wiring) form changing compositions with the circuitry, wiring and paper mounted on the wall. the gallery has large windows so the lighting conditions change throughout the day. the piece is lit with a mix of electric and natural light. the work emits very quiet sounds from its piezo speakers. the amplitude of the audio is intentionally on the threshold of hearing, and the placement of the speakers creates a spacialized listening experience. small, white LEDs with varying brightness and frequency (described below) and white wires are integrated into the paper mounted on the wall. the paper has been embossed by hand.
through continuo is a constellation of events. some are random: gamma-ray detection and the presence and behaviors of visitors, and some are composed: the sonification of the gamma-rays (the very quiet pops and clicks one hears around the work, emanating from piezo speakers mounted in the ceiling), the look of the installation, and the changing frequencies of the LEDs. “frequencies” of the LEDs refers not to the brightening and dimming, but to the changing rates of pulsation. this feature of the work is very difficult to document.
gamma radiation detected by our sensors are transposed into sound and light. the relationship between the gamma-ray detection and the pops and clicks of sound is linear, 1:1. the relationship between the soft pops and clicks to changes in the frequencies of the LEDs is statistical, non linear. each led has its own pattern of brightening, dimming, and pulsating, and those behaviors are influenced by a statistical analysis of gamma-ray detection in real time.
essentially, the work has linear and logarithmic relationships based on random events. for the viewer, this creates an experience that oscillates between one’s impulse to understand events as sequential/temporal and a work that is inherently spectral, i.e., based on persistent, shifting frequencies.
in the context of binary title of this show, Silence and Noise, we’re thinking about time and frequency, and how one’s experience is persistently both, but how from an increasing number of perspectives time is an illusion unique to the human mind. the universe, it seems, is not sequence, it is waves – but we are wired so that to us its always both. in through continuo the linear relationship between the gamma-ray events and the audible clicks is a noise element in that it evokes the temporal mind, and the silence is the silence of the visible change in LED frequency.
the Silence and Noise effect is that the work itself is an oscillation, a wavelet and an interval between the two.
we’ll be posting video and an audio recording soon.
for more images go here.
120/108 is a sound and movement work done in collaboration with Terence Caulkins. it was realized as part of the opening performance for Silence and Noise at the Brooklyn Zen Center (April 13, 2012), co-curated by Noah Fischer and Terence Caulkins. Silence and Noise, for which we also have a sculptural work, will run through September 29, 2012.
120/108 began as a study on the acoustical properties of a large, singing bell that resides in the zendo (meditation space) of the Brooklyn Zen Center and has a primary role in services at the center.
the analysis of the bell extended to an analysis of how its sounds propagated through the zendo, and how different acoustical properties of the bell, its frequencies, and those of the zendo were revealed at different locations within the space.
the work we composed utilizes various acoustical phenomena evoked by striking and rubbing the bell, as well as resonating it with sine waves. we developed an interface to synchronize contact with the bell with software and permit real time communication between the two.
the piece was experienced by walking slowly through the space as practiced with kinhin (walking meditation). visitors followed a pre-determined path intended to slowly reveal each element of the composition. additional performances over summer ’12 are being planned.
the title refers to the primary frequency of the bell and the number of interactions with it during the performance.
composed of paper, wood, and electronics, ritornello exists as documentation of an ephemeral situation.
the work is programmed and the program alternates between repeated and varying elements. the code controls a fragile assemblage of various materials, and as it loops the assemblage decays.
while the work has no subject, its contents include the illusion of time’s control and the humility and wonder of making things in an atmosphere of change.
the 8 diaphanes are individual assemblage/drawings of casting paper embedded with electronics, each measuring approximately 9″x11″. featured in our august, 2011 solo exhibit, of light like intervals, each diaphane was made specifically for installation in the porch windows of the virginia weston besse gallery on martha’s vineyard.
inspired by the slowly changing, ambient natural light of the westward facing space, the architecturally transitional nature of the porch, and the color and textures of its wooden interior, we developed this project with the combining of indirect sunlight and electric light (LEDs), and the qualities of transition, in mind.
the electronics consist of a small micro-controller, modulating a single, tiny LED.
each micro-controller is programmed individually to persistently and slowly change the brightness of its LED in a process analogous the gentle shifts in ambient light of the space as sunlight is filtered through the lush foliage of a garden in front of it.
looking at a diaphane, one is aware of change occurring on its surface, resulting in different views of the work’s subtle and complex topography, but the specifics of what in fact has changed are not always clear. the paper composition of each diaphane varies in thickness, from the opaque to the see-through, permitting views of the outside to be integrated into each work.
we began making site visits to prepare for our show in early may, prior to the bloom of spring, and were captivated by the island’s natural light, and the intricate, twisting branches, and horizontality of its trees and brush. in subsequent visits we noted the forms created by the lines of branches interlaced with increasing foliage. while we never intended to portray these forms in our work the affinity between the island’s landscape and our compositions and mark marking is clear, and in the context of these works in this location, formative.
to see the entire flickr set, please go here.
a wall-mounted assemblage of casting paper embedded with electronics measuring approximately 3’x4′, 7744 is one of three works from our recent solo exhibit, of light like intervals, made specifically for installation on the porch of the virginia weston besse gallery on martha’s vineyard.
inspired by the slowly changing, ambient natural light of the westward facing space, the architecturally transitional nature of the porch, and the color and textures of its wooden interior, we developed this project with the combining of indirect sunlight and electric light (LEDs), and the qualities of transition, in mind.
the electronics consist of multiple small micro-controllers each controlling a single tiny LED, each embedded and interconnected by thin, white wire.
the network of micro-controllers are programmed individually to persistently and slowly change the brightness of their LEDs in a process analogous the gentle shifts in ambient light of the space as sunlight is filtered through the lush foliage of a garden in front of it.
looking at 7744, one is aware of change occurring on the surface of the piece, resulting in different views of the works subtle and complex topography, but the specifics of what in fact has changed are not always clear.
we began making site visits to prepare for our show in early may, prior to the bloom of spring, and were captivated by the island’s natural light, and the intricate, twisting branches, and horizontality of its trees and brush. in subsequent visits we noted the forms created by the lines of branches interlaced with increasing foliage. while we never intended to portray these forms in our work the affinity between the island’s landscape and our compositions and mark marking is clear, and in the context of these works in this location, formative.
to view the entire flickr set, go here.
charge-shift nos. 1 and 2, are two sculptures made of micro-controllers, custom software, electrical components, and monofilament wire, measuring approximately 4’x2’x10″, and suspended inside of two display areas on the porch of the virginia weston besse gallery on martha’s vineyard. they were included in our recent solo exhibit entitled of light like intervals.
inspired by the slowly changing, ambient natural light of the westward facing space, the architecturally transitional nature of the porch, and the color and textures of its wooden interior, charge-shift, along with 7744, and 8 diaphanes, was developed with the combining of indirect sunlight and electric light (LEDs), and the qualities of transition, in mind.
the electronics consist of multiple small micro-controllers each controlling a single tiny LED, each interconnected and suspended/positioned within the work by thin, white conductive wire.
the network of micro-controllers are programmed individually to persistently and slowly change the brightness of their LEDs in a process analogous the gentle shifts in ambient light of the space as sunlight is filtered through the lush foliage of a garden in front of it.
looking at charge-shift, one is aware of change occurring on the surfaces of the piece, resulting in different views of the composition, but the specifics of what in fact has changed are not always clear.
we began making site visits to prepare for our show in early may, prior to the bloom of spring, and were captivated by the island’s natural light, and the intricate, twisting branches, and horizontality of its trees and brush. in subsequent visits we noted the forms created by the lines of branches interlaced with increasing foliage. while we never intended to portray these forms in our work the affinity between the island’s landscape and our compositions and mark marking is clear, and in the context of these works in this location, formative.
to view the entire flickr set, go here.