From 19 to 25 October 2015, Apo33 crossed the Atlantic to Quebec City in Canada in the context of exchanges Nantes-Québec initiated the demonstration D’Art and the City of Nantes.
We presented our project Subtecture – a performance installation using architecture and sound as a basis for artistic research. We were received by Avatar (artists’ center in audio and electronic art).
We were confronted with a difficult space for the Subtecture project: an alternative concert hall – the Pantoum. Subtecture may be presented in different contexts but the concert hall, is not the ideal place for this version.
Nonetheless we attempted to make the piece as we imagined for its realization in Quebec, a mirror version of the version proposed in the Platform Intermedia in Nantes at the same time. We had to redesign a new version according to the constraints of this space. The version of Subtecture-Nantes could not operate in this location.
For that we decided to cross two pieces, sound and musical construction of Subtecture, infrabass and architectural resonance with another work: “Diffrazione” using strong and blinding stage lights to rise the vibrations of visual light frequencies across the eyelids.
We completely reorganize the space to extract its primary essence and find the connection with a resonant-open space, far from an enclosed concert venue . We were not been able to remove the stage in order to find an entirely empty space so we made use of it and transformed it into a vibrant and resonant space which also reverse its typical use.
We also refocusing all speakers to the center of the stage to create a wall of sound. The stereo does not actually work in this location, whilst Subtecture had been created for a spatialisation, this was never provided to us, due to budget limitations or a lack of understanding of the_ project. The entire work became mono on both a visual and audible plane.
Three openings were presented that evening, the visual arts School of Quebec, another at “Lieu” and finally the last to Pantoum, the organizers had pretty good coordination of three openings of the exhibitions.
The opening of our exhibition held in third part of the evening was undoubtably rather rock’n’roll compared to others, it made sense in the continuity of the evening.
The audience reacts quite well to the work, both in listening to the place, the alterations of vision and movement in space.
Of the public that came to the show, the piece looks, means, in live … there may be several levels of reading, purely visual, blinding, first where you can close your eyes and see an alterations of the meaning of vision, glare or visual forms is moving on the surface of our eyelids, print set on the retina but also vibration of light. One can just as easily feel the space, listening to the walls and places objects resonate, vibrating come back with the frequencies or rather returning them to vibrate with the resonance frequencies of objects and walls, all powered from speakers .
APO33-QcNantes-Subtecture from Avatar on Vimeo.
At the heart of the device, a machine component orchestra shifts every hour and every da, producing a different music, adapting to the exposure time and the hours of the day, it is both an autonomous composer and interpreter … the machine built like a clock playing music and sounds like a time score adapted to the broadcasting space.
Remaining ultimately in the human nest returned as this young girl on the ground proposing to read and listen to the space from a different point view. A Wink the reversal of the painting?
With the support of Ville de Nantes, the Institut Français and the Dicream – CNC.
Thank you to Manif D’art, Avatar and Plantoum for the expérience.