29th of March, 2024, 20:00
MSUM, Ljubljana, Slovenia
FB event
Waterfalls are the only continuous source of infrasonic frequencies found in nature. Large falls create extremely low sounds that can travel up to 400 km. Although unheard by our ears, these frequencies play a crucial role in the delicate balance of ecosystems and the lives of certain creatures.
Some migratory birds, gifted with the capacity to sense these frequencies, employ them as a navigational compass during their extensive journeys. Their ability to hear these low frequencies far from the waterfalls and remember their locations becomes a sensory base for long-distance migrations. This sonic relationship has existed for as long as the waterfalls have been flowing, but nowadays many such sites have grown silent due to the extreme droughts caused by the climate crisis.
In addition, artificial sources of infrasonic frequencies such as wind turbines, airplanes, or military equipment and facilities are polluting the sound environment and causing birds to get lost.
Cascade aims to draw attention to these invisible realities by rendering the waterfall’s infrasonic frequencies into an immersive experience for the audience. A generative collage of infrasonic recordings from large waterfalls is played through 128 speakers. While these are incapable of reproducing infrasound due to their small size, they generate a vibration that is then expressed by a luminescent optical fiber.
The result is a visualization of the soundwaves falling through the illuminated strings. The audience is invited to walk through the curtain actively engaging with the artwork as they traverse the space. They can also perceive this otherwise invisible energy with their bodies, by touching the strings and feeling the vibration on their skin. The piece aims to reveal the interconnectedness of all living entities and help us become more aware of the importance of preserving even those parts of nature that remain invisible to us.
Marc Vilanova
Marc Vilanova (1991) is a sound and visual artist working at the intersection of art, science and technology. Vilanova’s artistic production has always been led by a spirit of innovation fueled by an interest in new media. Merging research and artistic practices in projects in which concepts such as audio-visuality, automation, machine self-expression, AI, superintelligence and the socio-political implications of these regarding society’s relationship with technology are explored.
He currently creates audiovisual installations while also working with performance and interdisciplinary collaborations with dance, theater, and moving images. His pieces have been presented at festivals around the world, in Japan, the US, Canada, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Iran, Taiwan, South Korea, Russia and across Europe.
He has received numerous grants, awards and residencies, including at the prestigious Headlands Center for the Arts, San Francisco 2020; Bemis Center for Contemporary
Art Fellowship, Omaha 2019; KARA Award, Teheran 2018; Citizen Artist Incubator, Linz 2017; the Encouragement Prize Tokyo Experimental Festival 2016; Jury Prize at Saxopen, Congress Strasbourg 2015; and the First Prize at the International Contest of Sound Art Performance, Zaragoza 2014, among others.
As an educator, Vilanova has led workshops on transdisciplinary creation, live electronics, free improvisation and extended techniques. He has been invited as a guest professor at the Tokyo National University GEIDAI, Universidad de los Andes, Universidad Javeriana de Bogotá, Moshen Gallery Teheran, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro “UNIRIO”, Sibelius Academy Helsinki, and Hochschule für Musik Basel, as well as at many other institutions.
Co-produced by MoTA – Museum of Transitory Art and SONICA Festival Institute.
The European Media Art Platform (EMAP), co-funded by the Creative Europe program of the European Union.
Supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia, the Municipality of Ljubljana – Department of Culture, and the Institut Ramon Llull.
photo by Alexandre Berthier
www.sonica.si
