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WAP SIDE UP 4-26 January 2002 Headphone piece for Gain show, apexart, New York. Curated by: Kelly Taxter with other works by Ruth Anderson, Ken Linehan, Andrea Polli, Scanner and Katarina Matiasek, Laetitia Sonami. GAIN: The amount of amplification (voltage, current or power) of an audio signal, usually expressed in units of dB (i.e., the ratio of the output level to the input level). For example, amplifying a voltage signal by a factor of two is stated as a voltage gain increase of 6 dB. Gain is an exhibition of works which address the intersection of artist and machine. Through subversion, invention, and critical address, each artist is responding to the integral role technology plays in daily life. The formats used include sound, sculpture, video, and multi-media interactive environments. In each instance the artist has devised a unique method through which to create their works, illustrating the new sonic and visual languages developing as a result of investigation into new and old technologies and machines. All of the artists are contributing to this language, by designing new technologies, or adding to the functionality and conceptions of those already in existence. The title Gain, taken from a sound engineering handbook, alludes to these additions as an amplification of ideas. Kaffe Matthews: wap side up, 2001. Performance will take place Saturday, January 12, 4-6 p.m. at apexart. wap side up is a 3-dimensional audio environment which takes listeners through a series of spaces, while they sit absolutely still. Using the sound of apexart’s gallery space, recorded via cell phone, as source for her composition, Matthews is able to draw out the subtle and hidden complexities of our environment which are remarkably important to our psychological understanding of space. Particularly relevant is her use of the cell phone as recording device. Matthews is typically present in the space she records, but through this method she removes both herself and hence much control over the nature of the recording. This process parallels the very nature of cell phone conversation itself. It is one which allows for more frequent communication, but the distortion and staccato nature of the conversation often results in mis-communication and lost calls. |