week 9: Worry Dolls, Tutorial, Research and Trauma Dump:

for this weeks class we made the worry dolls from Jennifers pitch form week 7.

at the beginning of class we realised we might not have enough to fill the worry dolls with, so half of us went out to get more stuffing, whilst the other half stayed and started making the first doll.

to create the doll we had long sheets of burlap that we laid on the floor and got Isaac to lay down. Abidish then drew an outline around him leaving some space so that the doll wouldn’t become too slim. we ended up with an outline of a cooky man with a very large round head…

after we had gotten the cutouts of the doll, we started sowing around the edges, something i found very relaxing, yet challenging as i haven’t sown since i was 10. this part also took the longest to finish, so Jennifer helped us out to make it go quicker.

we left parts of the doll open so that we could add the stuffing from the arms and legs as well as the top of the head. i think i enjoyed the stuffing a little too much. just something satisfying in seeing the doll take shape.

although this took some time, we still made time to give the dolls some personality and Isaacs iconic manbun.

once i started writing the worries however, i got in a totally different mood compared to how i was during the first half of class. the class starting out very light and fun, but drastically changing when i needed to face my worries and dare to put them out in the world. having had a difficult semester mentally, i had a lot to write. so much so, that i didn’t have the time to attach all of them individually and ended up attaching 10 worries with the same thread. i also ended up writing some worries in Norwegian as i didn’t want my most personal thoughts to be read by the people who see me writing it, so in a way i started worrying about my worries being seen. strange how that works.

once we had 20 minutes left of class we had to sit the dolls up and carry them to the main entrance of the School of Art for the rest of the Uni to be able to write their worries on it. this is something i find incredibly powerful as the dolls become so much more then a collection of the classes worries, but a collection of everyones worries.

this project is yet to be completed as the dolls will sit there until Friday in week 10 before we take them to the beach and burn them. a fitting way to rid ourself of our worries. i am really looking forward to this as it will be a very emotional day for me i think. seeing everything i have been so upset about, burn away. i was originally going to skip this class as i thought i would break down during class, but i am really glad i managed to attend as i feel like i am really benefitting from this project.

so i just wanted to give a big Thank You to Jennifer for coming up with such a great project.

Tutorial:

during this weeks tutorial Miranda joined me in the Project room as i was setting up the final outcome of Trauma Dump. This was a really nice experience for me as i have worked my ass of getting this project done even during some of my hardest times mentally. these objects have meant so much for me, so seeing someone else experiencing them for the first time left me feeling really proud of myself. the voices of the objects finally heard. finally noticed at their most beautiful. im getting emotional writing this post, so that tells you a lot about how much this project means to me. yes it can still be improved, but given the time and me starting this project in particular mid semester, i feel like i have gotten so much more done then i originally thought i would.

Miranda seemed to really enjoy it (correct me if i am wrong), as the feedback i got was only positive. the one thing i wish i had done sooner was to get Phil to build a new wall so i could have shadows on three walls rather then two, but its a good leaning experience for next semester! i have finally gotten Painting 3 changes for IP4 so these notebooks will continue for at least one more semester!

Research:

Bruce Nauman: Get Out of my Mind, Get Out of this room:

i was first introduced to this piece by Miranda during one of our first tutorials, but for some reason i just haven’t thought about posting any research on these notebooks. this truly showed me how sound alone can generate an emotional response without much else.

at the start of the semester i was only going to use audio, but i changed my mind as i found the binned objects, but looking at artists that can scare the visitors at a museum using only their voice is something i really want to explore more.

Susan Hiller: Witness:

sound installation with 500 loudspeakers all talking at the same time. you walk inn and it sounds like a lot of whispering, but you can place one of the suspended objects closer to your ear and listen to the individual audio of someone witnessing a sighting. this is another artist Miranda has introduced me to during our tutorials, and i really find it interesting how differently artists are using sound to get their message forward.

Ignas Krunglevicius: POSSESSOR

in this sound installation the artist test the way we hear, and even how we see sound. this installation uses five large iron sculptures as speakers and plays subtle sounds. some of the frequencies are so loud we cant hear them whilst the lower frequencies manage to get the iron sculptures to shake.

much like this piece i wanted to use my sounds to affect the other works in the hypothetical exhibition. this work is often classifies as a type of parasite as the sounds find their way throughout the museum.

Siri Austeen: Det som beveges, flytter seg (that which gets moved, will move):

sound installation i have seen in Oslos National Museum in the exhibition called “i call it art” that included a large amount of Norwegian contemporary artists of all disciplines. this installation is one of the first sound installations i have really taken my time listening to, as the main goal of the artwork is to make you more aware of the sounds around.

i unknowingly ended up suspending my objects in a fairly similar fashion to this piece and Susan Hillers “Witness”. after looking back at the old art i have seen i am really beginning to appreciate the art-form of sound.

Trond Nicholas Perry: Fløyteorgel (flute-organ?): translation may be wrong (organ as in the instrument)

Trond Nicholas Perry and his work “Fløyteorgel” is another artwork i had the pleasure to witness during Oslos National Museums exhibition called “I call it art” in summer of this year. this took sound to a different place then the other artworks i have seen as the sounds are in the visitors hands. we can pick up the tubes our self and create the “music”, or just sit and listen to others playing with the artwork.

Perry often plays with how musical instruments can be used to create art and ended up making a massive installation using water, wood and tubes! i love how contemporary art finds strange ways of creating something new!

Per Inge Bjørlo: Indre Rom V. Målet (inner room by the goal):

This artwork has really shown me how to experience sound in a specific place. the whole room is built like a vent, where you walk up the stairs. only one person is allowed inn at a time, giving the visitors an incredibly personal experience. every step you make, every breath you take gets vibrated all around you. it almost feels like you are in a space ship or on a different planet. at the end of the hallway there is a bright light coming from the floor where you can sit down and take inn the experience fully. this year has been nothing but discovering sound artists, and now i finally got to make my own sound project!

Paul Granjon: Ewaste:

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this artwork i was introduced to by Miranda via Instagram! when i first saw it i really saw a similarity in both my work and his, but with some clear differences. unlike Trauma Dump (my project), Paul uses light and movement a lot more as well as the sounds and suspended objects. he also makes it more visible to see how the objects are suspended as the electrical objects he is using have wires and cables. little did i know he is another artwork made in Norway! its funny how i hadn’t looked in to a lot of art in Norway before this year and keep finding these incredible artworks! makes me incredibly excited to do a masters degree at home in Norway!

Trauma Dump:

i have officially named my personal project “Trauma Dump” as i found the name very fitting to the over all theme. its also a good wordplay as the objects are found in different bins around Aberystwyth.

i ended up with 153 objects i attached from the ceiling, but sadly haven’t managed to record all 153 of them. this hurts me as i would need some more time to get this done. However i feel the audio i managed to get is incredible!

here are some images of me hanging up the installation:

this took me about 7 hours to hang up, giving me about 1 hour to take images and record some videos. i really wish i had one more day with the project room to fully experience the finished work and also fully clean the room:/

videoes and photo of the installation completed!

i was in the prosess of hanging up the installation when it was my time for the tutorial, so Miranda asked if she could have it in the project room and see the work in person! this was such a fun experience as there has only been a handful of people who have seen the development of this project in person. and to show Miranda the work was probably something i wont forget! hearing that i am doing something right even during such a difficult time, really gave me the last kick i needed to keep going these last few weeks.

before ending the session in the project room i wanted to take some time becoming even closer with the objects. i sat listening to their beautiful conversation whilst uncomfortably sitting in the bin.

only two more weeks of class, with no more work on Trauma Dump! what to write about i ask?