Olivia Block Artist Talk
send + receive: a festival of sound v18
Winnipeg, Canada
ARTIST TALK
OLIVIA BLOCK (US) | Aural Superimpositions
MAWA (Mentoring Artists for Women's Art), 611 Main St.
With few exceptions, the perception of sound is, by nature, inseparable from the space it occupies. Sound waves reflect off of the surfaces within built structures-wood, metal, plaster, glass and more. Building materials and spatial dimensions interact with sound waves, shaping the auditory experience in key ways.
Recording technologies are able to capture the auditory qualities of a given space at a particular moment in time. When recordings are played back through speakers in a gallery or performance space, one location's aural framework (or soundscape) is layered onto the aural framework of a new location through amplification. These aural superimpositions can create strange cognitive dissonance and rich layers of meaning.
Chicago-based artist Olivia Block will address these ideas in relation to her own work. Block creates original sound compositions for concerts, site-specific multi-speaker installations, live cinema and live performance utilizing field recordings, chamber instruments and electronic textures. In addition to her recorded and solo performance pieces, she creates scores for large ensemble, string quartet and orchestra. Block has performed, premiered and exhibited her work throughout Europe, America and Japan.
Photos by Robert Szkolnicki
Olivia Block Artist Talk
send + receive: a festival of sound v18
Winnipeg, Canada
ARTIST TALK
OLIVIA BLOCK (US) | Aural Superimpositions
MAWA (Mentoring Artists for Women's Art), 611 Main St.
With few exceptions, the perception of sound is, by nature, inseparable from the space it occupies. Sound waves reflect off of the surfaces within built structures-wood, metal, plaster, glass and more. Building materials and spatial dimensions interact with sound waves, shaping the auditory experience in key ways.
Recording technologies are able to capture the auditory qualities of a given space at a particular moment in time. When recordings are played back through speakers in a gallery or performance space, one location's aural framework (or soundscape) is layered onto the aural framework of a new location through amplification. These aural superimpositions can create strange cognitive dissonance and rich layers of meaning.
Chicago-based artist Olivia Block will address these ideas in relation to her own work. Block creates original sound compositions for concerts, site-specific multi-speaker installations, live cinema and live performance utilizing field recordings, chamber instruments and electronic textures. In addition to her recorded and solo performance pieces, she creates scores for large ensemble, string quartet and orchestra. Block has performed, premiered and exhibited her work throughout Europe, America and Japan.
Photos by Robert Szkolnicki