Stuffed Silence, 2005/08
Stuffed
Silence is a VALUES ON DEMAND project, conceived by Andreas M. Kaufmann,
dedicated to the Nigerian inventor of Afro Beat Fela Anikulapo Kuti
and realized in cooperation with the electronic musician Gabriel Ananda.
The Nigerian musician Fela Anikulapo Kuti, with whose music I have been living for the last 20 years, has inspired "Stuffed Silence". This installation was created in collaboration with the Musician Gabriel Ananda, who composed the soundtrack.
Fela Kuti was a very charismatic figure, which fused coherent expression super grooves and very personal lyrics in a unique way. His was a sincere engagement in favor of human rights and a free and united Africa. This combination has always been fascinating for me.
Since meeting Gabriel Ananda we have spent many nights talking about common structures in visual art and music. I soon understood that Gabriel's music (a sort of emotion evoking Techno) has much in common w ith Fela's Afro beat.
This was the beginning of a process that eventually culminated in the installation Stuffed Silence, which is based on an analysis of constitutions and human rights declarations from all over the world. The extracted verbal norms and values have been choreographed in this four-channel video-installation. This installation deals as well in formal as in metaphorical terms with touchable and untouchable borders, and should always be installed in Dialogue of the relevant Architecture by then.
Stuffed Silence is part of the group of artworks, which are labeling under the project title VALUES ON DEMAND.
As well in formal as in metaphorical terms the choreography is thus broaching the issue of visible and invisible limitations.
The choreography in terms of dramaturgy is living from the contrast between clearly constructed movements like straight-lines, polygons, curves, circles on the one hand, and unpredictable, sometimes even offensive moves on the other hand:
At the beginning horizontal straight-lines and zigzag surface spanning polygons are dominating on the spot; they are inspired by one of the first computer games called "pong". In the middle of the choreography are emerging the first curved movements contrasted with very aggressive moves, which are transformed a little bit later into circular motion figures. With it the motion speed is displaced slowly from the center to the margins of the screen. In the very end all values are sucked in straight to the center of the wall with high speed, forming there for a second a light-nugget, in order to disappear immediately after in all opposite directions.
Conception by Andreas M. Kaufmann © 2005/6
(image gallery)
(Lieux de Belligérance)
Download: Valentin Roma - An approximation to Stuffed Silence (.pdf)
General Conception:
"Stuffed Silence" is dealing with the issue
of rapid loss of identities, meanings and values in our society.
This process seems to be a result of the increasing standardization
of the planet, as a consequence apparently abolishing the need for
thinking of alternatives.The Nigerian musician Fela Anikulapo Kuti, with whose music I have been living for the last 20 years, has inspired "Stuffed Silence". This installation was created in collaboration with the Musician Gabriel Ananda, who composed the soundtrack.
Fela Kuti was a very charismatic figure, which fused coherent expression super grooves and very personal lyrics in a unique way. His was a sincere engagement in favor of human rights and a free and united Africa. This combination has always been fascinating for me.
Since meeting Gabriel Ananda we have spent many nights talking about common structures in visual art and music. I soon understood that Gabriel's music (a sort of emotion evoking Techno) has much in common w ith Fela's Afro beat.
This was the beginning of a process that eventually culminated in the installation Stuffed Silence, which is based on an analysis of constitutions and human rights declarations from all over the world. The extracted verbal norms and values have been choreographed in this four-channel video-installation. This installation deals as well in formal as in metaphorical terms with touchable and untouchable borders, and should always be installed in Dialogue of the relevant Architecture by then.
Stuffed Silence is part of the group of artworks, which are labeling under the project title VALUES ON DEMAND.
Choreographic Conception:
The choreographic conception of the video animation is made for a nonstandard extended surface:
Four single projections should be bonded to one single screen.
This screen should be always related to the architectonical site. In Olot the screen has a length
of approximately 16 Meters and is filling the
entire lower wall on the right side of the exhibition space. The physical margins of this wall
are defining the border between the virtual and the real space.As well in formal as in metaphorical terms the choreography is thus broaching the issue of visible and invisible limitations.
The choreography in terms of dramaturgy is living from the contrast between clearly constructed movements like straight-lines, polygons, curves, circles on the one hand, and unpredictable, sometimes even offensive moves on the other hand:
At the beginning horizontal straight-lines and zigzag surface spanning polygons are dominating on the spot; they are inspired by one of the first computer games called "pong". In the middle of the choreography are emerging the first curved movements contrasted with very aggressive moves, which are transformed a little bit later into circular motion figures. With it the motion speed is displaced slowly from the center to the margins of the screen. In the very end all values are sucked in straight to the center of the wall with high speed, forming there for a second a light-nugget, in order to disappear immediately after in all opposite directions.
Conception by Andreas M. Kaufmann © 2005/6
(image gallery)
(Lieux de Belligérance)
More related information:
Download:
Marta Gili - Freedom and Dependence (.pdf)
Download: Valentin Roma - An approximation to Stuffed Silence (.pdf)