Reclaiming Vision
Date:
Mon, 09/23/2019 - 9:00am - Fri, 11/01/2019 - 5:00pm
Location:
CCRMA Lobby
Event Type:
Other CCRMA WAVE (Wall for AudioVisual Expression) presents Reclaiming Vision.
The exhibition will run between September 23 - November 1 in the CCRMA Lobby. Our building is open to the public weekdays during regular business hours (9am-5pm).
Directed by: Marjolijn Dijkman & Toril Johannessen
Music: Henry Vega
Performer: Jan Willem Troost
Cinematographer: Aleksander Andreassen
Editor: Dieter Diependaele
Originally commissioned by The Munch Museum for Munchmuseet on the Move, 2018
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Captured through a light microscope, ‘Reclaiming Vision’ features a diverse cast of microorganisms, sampled from the brackish waters of the inner Oslo Fjord, alongside algae, cultivated at the University of Oslo. The film reveals various processes in the water that are hidden to the naked human eye. By investigating the brackish water, its inhabitants, its properties, and the traces left by human activities, the film is a reflection upon the relationship we humans have with our surroundings, especially through what we cannot see.
The film is inspired by real and historical events. The scenes have been staged by the artists, taking the presumption of reality that characterizes nature documentaries into the realm of fiction film. Any resemblance to scientific research is coincidental. Starting from the assertion that looking evolved from the sea – eyes, in fact, evolved from marine algae – ‘Reclaiming Vision’ takes the viewer on a journey through various ways of looking at, relating to and influencing nature.
The main characters in the film are from brackish water. Central to the film is the notion of brackish with its many, mostly negative, connotations. The conditions of brackish water are affected by natural phenomena such as the tides and seasonal variation, but are also affected by rising sea levels as a result of climate change. Therefore, brackish water plays an important role as a warning sign in the prediction of various ecological scenarios for many coastal societies worldwide. Melting ice caps might influence global ocean currents by altering the saline levels, which again will have a disastrous impact on microorganisms in the oceans that are responsible for 50–85% of the world's oxygen production and CO2 storage. Without these microorganisms, planet Earth would become uninhabitable for most living creatures.
The film highlights the fact that human efforts to understand the world continues to be based on detached contemplation of observable phenomena. This pervades despite scientific developments, such as the microscope, that enable us to study our invisible co-inhabitants up close. Across different disciplines, people are constantly re-evaluating our relationship with our surroundings and are trying to find new approaches that transcend binary thinking and the view that nature is just an economic resource.
While ‘Reclaiming Vision’ reveals life on the smallest scale, its scope relates to global phenomena.
The music for the film is a composition for electronics, cello and voice, composed by Henry Vega.
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Toril Johannessen (b. 1978, Norway) is an artist living in Tromsø. Perception and representation as historical and technological constructs are recurring themes in Johannessen’s artistic practice. Combining historical records with fiction and her own investigations, and with an attention to how science coexists with other systems of knowledge and belief, her works often have elements of storytelling in visual or written form. Solo shows include Entrée and Trykkeriet, Bergen (2019); OSL Contemporary, Oslo (2019); Munchmuseet on the Move, The Munch Museum (w/M. Dijkman), Oslo (2018); Hordaland Art Centre, Bergen (2017); ARoS, Aarhus (2017); Museum of Contemporary Art, Oslo (2016). Group shows include Trondheim Art Museum (2018); the 13th Dak’Art Bienniale de Dakar (2018); Plug In ICA, Winnipeg (2017); Extra City, ARTSPACE, Auckland (2014); 13th Istanbul Biennial (2013) and Documenta 13 (2012).
Marjolijn Dijkman (b. 1978, The Netherlands) is an artist and co-founder of Enough Room for Space. Her works can be seen as a form of science – fiction; partly based on facts and research but often brought into the realm of fiction, abstraction and speculation. Solo shows include OSL Contemporary, Oslo (2019); NOME, Berlin, DE (2018), Munch Museum, Oslo, NO (2018); Fig. 2 at ICA, London, UK (2015); IKON Gallery, Birmingham, UK (2011); Berkeley Art Museum, US (2008). Group shows include Contour Biennale 9, Mechelen, BE (2019); The Overview Effect, BOZAR, Brussels, BE (2019); 21st Biennale of Sydney, AU (2018); 11th Shanghai Biennale, CN (2016); 7th Mercosul Biennial, Porto Alegre, BR (2009) and the 8th Sharjah Biennial, UAE (2007).
Henry Vega, born in New York City (1973), is an active composer and performer of new music whose works appear in productions of theatre, dance and concert music that focus solely on modern artistic trends. His music ranges from virtuosic instrumental writings to subtle colorful compositions orchestrating traditional instrumentations with the world of electronic sound. His current interests lie within theatrical settings of his music in combination with video in the space of minimal aesthetics that cross simple harmonies over noisy counterpoints.
FREE
Open to the Public