Neighbouring Frequencies | Showcase of Flemish and Dutch sound art
Sound art is a unifying component between the Netherlands and Belgium. There is a vibrant field of hybrid art practices in which the exploration of sound takes center stage in various artistic and critical forms. From installation art and performances, to technological experiments. In these practices, collaboration across borders is common and has an impactful history. The exhibition Neighbouring Frequencies showcases the work of five artists who are exemplary of the interconnectedness and richness of sound art. Listening to their sculptures and installations, we learn about hidden dimensions of our environment and the relationships between landscapes, humans, and non-humans. The selection is a result of a collaboration between the Brakke Grond, the Amsterdam media art and music festival FIBER, and international arts center STUK in Leuven.
Els Viaene presents Vibrant Matter (2016), a kinetic sculpture in which the manipulation of paper leads to a grand, transformative landscape in sound. Floris Vanhoof's installation Antenna (2022) is a modified grand piano that brings invisible electromagnetic waves to life. Oussama Tabti showcases Homo Carduelis (2022), an installation with more than thirty empty bird cages that play the rhythmic symphony of endangered goldfinches. In Zijlijn / Linea Lateralis (2021), Stijn Demeulenaere teaches us about the impact of human-produced sound on marine life in the North Sea. Amsterdam-based artist Luis Lecea Romera explores the ecological damage to the Iberian landscape and its intertwined historical and socio-political complexities with Antecâmara (2023).
Neighbouring Frequencies is can be visited for free from Wednesday, May 30 to Sunday June 16. The festive opening takes place on Friday 31 May. The exhibition is part of FIBER Festival taking place from May 29th to June 2nd in Amsterdam.
Els Viaene - Vibrant Matter (2016)
An audio-based kinetic sculpture, Vibrant Matter manipulates a paper membrane with magnets, amplifying its sound through embedded metals. Inspired by a trip to Iceland, it explores the relationship between sound, matter, and landscape, revealing hidden processes beneath the surface, recorded and articulated through sound.
Floris Vanhoof - Antenna (2022)
In Antenna, Floris Vanhoof transforms a grand piano with a hexagonal antenna, translating electromagnetic waves into vibrations on the piano strings. The installation prompts contemplation on the omnipresence of electromagnetic waves and the unique sounds they generate on a classical instrument.
Oussama Tabti - Homo Carduelis (2022)
A visual artist from Brussels, Oussama Tabti, presents a thought-provoking installation featuring 30 empty birdcages, embodying the rhythmic symphony of endangered goldfinches. It serves as a commentary on the impact of domestication on these birds and a reflection on human entrapment.
Stijn Demeulenaere - Zijlijn / Linea Lateralis (2021)
An artistic research project, Zijlijn / Linea Lateralis explores the relationship between biophony (sound made by marine life) and anthropophony (sound springing from human activity). Through underwater sound recordings at the borders of the North Sea, the composition invites the audience to experience the complex interplay between man-made sounds and marine life.
Luis Lecea Romera - Antecâmara (2023)
Luis Lecea Romera is an artist, architect, and musician. Antecâmara follows the artist's interest in examining the underlying historical and socio-political complexities. Conceived after a scouting around the margins of the Gerês Natural Park, “Antecâmara” deploys a sound composition based on field recordings from scorched earth after forest fires caused by eucalyptus trees, assessing not what the reserve protects but what it protects itself from.
