19th January, 3pm version
Description / abstract
Triadic ocule is a performance research group that investigates human uncertainty and decision-making processes in contemporary urban societies. Its enquiry is to make audio-visual site specific art works by using live input from the cosmos above, the geology beneath and contemporary urban data that it will process real time through its oracular system.
The performance installation proposed for this residency will be a new work that interacts with the physical environment and social strata of its locale to create a rich and shimmering tapestry construct of 3D sound and image. The work will be an artistic intervention in a researched natural or industrial location (e.g. cave, abandoned railway, deconsecrated church, incomplete architecture,) that uses its bespoke theatrical, electronic, software system to invite questions reflecting the current state of contemporary society and the relations between humans, free will, machines, and tools. The creation of an ocular system, a portal through which to invite answers from the Supernatural/ 4th dimension, will be the central core to this approach.
Concept / theme
Many examples through history show human anxiety over “what the future brings”. Native Americans, Mayans, ancient Greeks and Romans, Chinese, Africans, South Americans, Europeans all have examples of oracular methods they have developed to establish connections with higher powers asking for guidance as to how best live life. Seekers were ordinary, looking for answers to daily questions, as well as rich and powerful statesmen seeking guidance on the future of entire nations.
Super-fast-forward to the current information age of data streams, remote sensing, CCTV sniffing, satellite broadcast overload, of urban living angst, of separateness, of nowness, of information anxiety, of petrified thought, of abandonment of authentic self. Does the human have any control over its life today? One would like to think so, yet, in the fast-consumer-driven-high-achieving daily grind, the human is trapped. Lost? Logic, rationality and the current UK government for example purports a belief that we can direct our lives freely; but capitalism induced advertising drives the feeble minded consumer and weakens individual creativity and potential.
Triadic ocule therefore will look into the relationship between ancient and contemporary oracular activities across various cultures to create a global understanding as to how and why they were used in the past and what is their relevance in contemporary life. Simultaneously, they will research, gather and utilise located, modern, earth-bound and data-related extrasensory influences as potential sources for foretelling the future in an attempt to engage in another dimension of answers.
Triadic ocule takes this route in the belief that its explorations will also create new and inspiring art works at every location that will touch wide ranging audiences.
The Output/ the Work.
The final work presented in the chosen site in Paris will employ the ocular system we have created during the whole project with remote and local data and audiences so presenting a sizzling feast of sound and image revealing new and maybe unheard as yet languages. It will be a culmination of the public experiments we make in specific locations during the three residencies which will address our essential research questions and test our developing hard and software systems.
Throughout, data gathering methods, sonifications, projections, the interaction of the public and our developing oracular technique will all be vital ingredients to test as well as the installation of the real and virtual systems, both digital and analogue. The use of time as a central and tangible conductor will also be vital ~ there could even be a vast clockwork time machine as central piece to the final show for example ~ not forgetting the overall visual design, which will include lighting and costuming of the three female artists and the telephonic interface to the oracle.
The data gathered to feed the work will be of three types; local, remote and physical.The local will include geological data, humidity, temperature,radio waves, on-air TV; the remote - satellties, the Internet,(data based, live streamed plus webcams), cable, GPS ; the physical - audio, seismic, vibrational, the architectural details of the site and light. The systems used to read/gather this material will include, accelerometers, microphones, radios and cameras as well as computers and the internet.
The number three is also central to this research. The tri-layered nature of our universe. The cosmos, the ether, the sky, the ether, heaven; the land, the humans, the data, the product of human societies; the earth, the rock, the soil, the molten core of the planet, hell. Father, son, holy ghost. The human experience makes a connection between these things. Question, can we also make a portal that harnesses these other energies? And use it locally?
At this stage, the site we are intending to utilise as the final performance location will be the abandoned railway line ‘La Petite Ceinture’ in Paris . It is envisaged that we could use a central arch as the main performance space that is fed by 2 other spaces on the question mark shape that ‘La Petite Ceinture’ draws through the city. To be able to take a wagon of audience/materials/data even to and from these remote spots to the central performance point during the installation will also be investigated.
A starting point for the design of the oracular system will follow rules of logic inspired by the number 3 and the circle. For example, the system could be fed by star positioning information, numbers of humans using the subway train mapped against the sites rock type to generate answers to specific questions. This system of input/output, question/answer, data/sound-visuals, will be based on open source software and electronic components. Audience/users will be the people asking the questions, and the supernatural entity will be embodied by the machinic apparatus hosting and driving the system and synthesizing the answers.
The questions themselves will be asked through an old telephone close to the machine. The answer revealed could be sound, noise,still image, recomposed speech, light, loud music, text,colour, fast moving image , a collage of all. The content could be abstract, narrative driven, symbolic,time based, no sense,as well as nothing. The decision, choice, mix and blend of these varying ingredients will of course be the central creative task for Triadic Ocule to tackle throughout.
The Artists. (see attached biographies)
Triadic Ocule is a collaboration between London based Kaffe Matthews(UK), Ele onora Oreggia (I) a n d Larisa Blazic (S). From three different countries of three different practises, they have discovered they speak a same language. Together they can combine an astonishing f u s i o n o f e x p e r ime n t a l e l e c t r o n i c m u s i c , noise, the implementation of moving image in public space, audio-visual intersections with architecture, and data sonification and visualization expertise. This collaboration will create space for an exciting new hybrid work that will test the limits of human sensory perception, inspire creative thought a n d offer understnading on the relevance and production of physical and contemporary art works .
As well as their professional creative practices, they also study varying martial arts including Capoeira, Battodo Fudokan, and Chi Gung.
Other important research questions.
What is happening to the human animal as it further removes itself from physical work with hands and the body? As we persist in filling all our time with brain consuming tasks, smart phones, messaging, screens, new information 24/7, fingers tap, brains think. Will this fast increasing obsessive activity ultimately cause the loss of any creative space as there is no cerebral pause time?
Urban society is becoming more detached from instinct, from original nature, human is developing an incapacity to connect, to detach, to release him/herself from desires created by the capitalism
References
Tesla Coil
Outcomes
"a DVD..?/audio downloads.
" Oracular software ? ?
" U s e r f e e d b a c k w o r k s h o p s
" A u d i o - v i s u a l p e r f o r m a n c e
" D o c u m e n t a t i o n o f t h e p r e - p r o d u c t i o n , d e v e l o p m e n t , p r o d u c t i o n p r o c e s s e s ( o n l i n e a n d o f f l i n e ) .
" radio broadcast: resonance FM, the Wire Magazine,
T e c h r e q u i r e m e n t s
1 x 3 2 c h a n n e l analogue m i x i n g d e s k
8 c h a n n e l s o u n d s y s t e m
2 x s u b w o o f e r s
12 x contact microphones
8 x condensor microphones
4 x vocal microphones
6 x accelerometers
4 x hydrophones
1 x MacBookPro laptop running LiSa, Max, PD, Super Collider.
3 x medium laptops on which we can run PD and stream audio and video
2 x 12 channel firewire interfaces
1 x Peavey midi controller
1 x OSC multi controller
1 x Kaleidoscope
1 x concave reflector
1 x telescope
1 x 8 foot wooden/metal/clockwork timepiece
L C D p r o j e c t o r s ( 2 - 3 )
Fast fat internet connection
Mains electricity
Cables and stands to connect.
Materials to install the equipment as invisibly as possible using found materials.
Lighting
No theatrical drapes
3 x Costumes
