Time Examined - RN109 [Preview]

8/3/2019 Time Examined - RN109 [Preview]

1/30

1

M IK A VAIN IO


2/30

19


3/30

20Cindy van Acker | Lanx | 2008

InLanx, a continuous current circulates between the body and the geometrical motifs around.

Balancing on lines, unfolding its sides, its ridges, its angles, playing with perspectives that continually

renew themselves, the body fathoms its capacity to inscribe forms in a predetermined space.

Transforming itself as if it were under the effect of an optical illusion, the dcor starts to vibrate, to

transform itself: A continuum with variable dimensions on the level of sensation.


4/30

21


5/30

22


6/30

23


7/30

24


8/30

25


9/30

27

M I K A VA I N I O I N S T AL L A T I O NS A N D S O U N D T R A C K S

Daniel Klemm

T H E C O I L E D C H R O N O S O P H I C A L A C C E S S P O I N T

Carl Michael von Hausswolff

L E T T H E S O U N D F L O W

Daniela Cascella

B I O G R A P H Y D I S C O G R A P H Y

E X H I B I T I O N S S O U N D T R A C K S B I B L I O G R A P H Y

( 2 9 )

( 3 1 )

( 3 7 )

( 4 2 )

( 4 4 )


10/30

29

Assembling a collection of Mika Vainios installation works has certainly been

a long-term adventure, but trying to reconstruct a period of more than ten years of a turbulentartistic life and investigating the remnants of a highly intriguing output was more than worth

it. The book in front of you with a CD that gathers its soundtrack puts together those parts

of Vainios work that developed alongside his widespread musical career, to deepen the insight

into his artistic conceptions and thus expanding the comprehension of his work.

Mika Vainio himself is not a chronologist who tends to document his life

with every snip of paper carrying his name nor does he consider doing his bit for posterity. He

lives in the here and now, with a focus on what is in front of him, forging every minute to not

leave it unseized. His Finnish temper is not what you would call pretentiuos; he rather stays inthe background, strumming the strings without attracting too much attention still making our

perception vibrate irresistably.

In the past thirteen years Mika Vainio has exhibited in some of the major art

spaces in Europe, and he has collaborated with both a number of important artists and curators.

Since his musical work has been in the focus of attention, his installations have never gained the

broader recognition they deserve without good reason. In the present book, a overview will

give a clear outline of this segment of his oeuvre. Also his realized soundtracks for other artists,

in the genres of video, film and dance are included. Each work is presented with a significant

selection of images (installation views, visuals or sketches) and an explanatory text to deliver its

basic idea. In the two essays Carl Michael von Hausswolff and Daniela Cascella longtime com-

panions and collaborators delicately introduce Vainios conceptions to further enlight the

readers understanding. On the enclosed CD one can find a selection of tracks created for the re-

spective installations and soundtracks.

This book is supposed to be the initial volume of a series of books dedicated

to the audio-visual work of artists associated to raster-noton. As for most of the artists of the

label to work with material outside the musical context is quite a usual matter; it has not yet

been presented on the same level accordingly. Good things come to those who wait.

M I K A VA I N I O I N S T A L L AT I O N S A N D S O U N D T R A C K S

Daniel Klemm


11/30

44

E X H I B I T I O N S

1996 Onko, Manifesta, Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands

Rude Mechanic (with Ilpo Visnen, David Crawforth, Hayley Newman),

Beaconsfield Gallery, London, UK

mikro makro (with Carsten Nicolai), all+tag, Kunst der Zeit GmbH Dresden,

Germany / Industriemuseum Chemnitz, Germany / Taidekeskus Mltinranta/Galleria

Saskia, Tampere, Finland / Galeria Miejska, Wroclow, Poland

1997 4 Radio, Migrateurs XXI, Muse dArt Moderne de la Ville de Paris, France

1998 27, Nuit Blanche, Muse dArt Moderne de la Ville de Paris, France

Linja (with Ilpo Visnen), Unfinished History, Walker Arts Center, Minneapolis,

USA / Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, USA

2000 2 50 Hz Thru Leslie Speaker (with Ilpo Visnen), Sonic Boom The Art Of Sound,

Hayward Gallery, London, UK

Untitled, Bring The Noise, Geneva, Switzerland

Ilmanvaihto, Mutations, Arc en Rve Centre dArchitecture, Bordeaux, France

2001 10 Transistor Radio (with Ilpo Visnen), Triskel Arts Centre, Cork, Ireland

Sondear, Architectures Of Discourse, Fundaci Antoni Tpies, Barcelona, Spain

3 Wall Clocks, Perspectives Architetture Sonore, Micamoca Gallery, Milan,

Italy / Frequenzen [Hz] Audio-Visual Spaces, Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt/Main,

Germany / Traces, Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery, Montral, Canada

2004 Berlin Soundchamber, 3rd Berlin Biennial For Contemporary Art,

KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin, Germany

2005 Untitled (with Ilpo Visnen), De Vleeshal, Middelburg, Netherlands

2008 Elsewhere (with Micol Assail), Galleria Nazionale dArte Moderna, Rome, Italy

2009 2 x 540 kHz, Mediaruimte, Lab(au)s Gallery for Electronic Art, Brussels, Belgium

S O U N D T R A C K S

2001 Mika Taanila A Physical Ring

2003 Anu Pennanen A Monument For The Invisible

2004 Eva Teppe Half Awake Half Asleep

Eva Teppe The Human Fly

2005 Eva Teppe Omert

2007 Lars Siltberg Candleflames Modulated

Cindy van Acker Kernel

2008 Cindy van Acker Lanx


12/30

B I B L I O G R A P H Y

all+tag| Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Prof. Ines Bruhn / Peter Bauer),

Industriemuseum, Chemnitz, Germany 1996

Manifesta European Biennial of Contemporary Art| Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Katalyn Neray),

Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands 1997

Migrateurs | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Hans-Ulrich Obrist), Muse dArt Moderne de la Ville de Paris,

France 1997

Nuit Blanche Scnes Nordiques | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Hans-Ulrich Obrist),

Muse dArt Moderne de la Ville de Paris, France 1998

Unfinished History | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Francesco Bonami), Walker Arts Center,

Minneapolis, USA 1998

Mutations | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Hans-Ulrich Obrist), Arc en Rve Centre dArchiteture,

Bordeaux, France 2000

Sonic Boom The Art of Sound | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by David Toop), Hayward Gallery,

London, UK 2000

Architectures of Discourse | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Ute Meta Bauer), Fundaci Antoni Tpies,

Barcelona, Spain 2001

Perspectives Architetture Sonore | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Daniela Cascella / Luca Cerizza),

Micamoca, Milan, Italy 2001

Frequencies [Hz] Audio-visual Spaces | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Jesper N. Jrgensen),

Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt/Main, Germany 2002

3rd Berlin Biennial for Contemporary Art| Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Ute Meta Bauer),

Berlin, Germany 2004

.ipeg bild ton maschine | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Johannes Fricke-Waldthausen),

Knstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, Germany 2004

Traces | Exhibition Catalogue (curated by Nicole Gingras), Galerie Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery,

Montral, Canada 2006

45


13/30

46

MIKA VAINIO . T IME EX AMINED

Published 2009 by raster-noton. archiv fr ton und nichtton | R-N 109

Essays by Daniela Cascella and Carl Michael von Hausswolff. With an introduction by Daniel Klemm.

Work texts by Cindy van Acker, Gilles Amalvi, Nicole Gingras, Daniel Klemm, Carsten Nicolai, Lars Siltberg,

Eva Teppe, and Mika Vainio.

Editors: Daniel Klemm, Olaf Bender

Design: Denise Walther, Heimatstuben Dresden

Print: DZA Druckerei zu Altenburg GmbH, Altenburg

First edition: 1.500

Photo credits and courtesy: Ute Meta Bauer (p. 61 > Sondear), Giulio Buono Studio Blu, Turin (p. 56/57 >

3 x Wall Clocks, Milan), Centre ddition Contemporaine, Geneva (p. 83 > Untitled, Geneva), Daniel Klemm (p. 15,

49-51 > 10 x Transistor Radio, 2 x 50 Hz Thru Leslie Speaker), Jens Liebchen (92, off endpaper > ), Lex de Meester

(p. 84-89 > Untitled, Middelburg), Isabelle Meister (p. 17/18, 19-24 >Kernel,Lanx), Norbert Miguletz (p. 58 >

3 x Wall Clocks, Frankfurt/Main), Muse dArt Moderne de la Ville de Paris (p. 16 > 4 x Radio), Nicola Percy

(p. 62/63 >Rude Mechanic), Kai von Rabenau (front endpaper > Portrait), Silvio Scafoletti (p. 75 > Elsewhere),

Lars Siltberg (p. 91 > Candleflames Modulated), Mika Taanila (p. 4-9 >A Physical Ring), Eva Teppe (p. 64-69, 76/77,

78 > Omert,Half Awake Half Asleep, The Human Fly), Mika Vainio (p. 52-55, 59, 60, 70/71 > Untitled (Migrateurs),27,Berlin Soundchamber,Ilmanvaihto), Walker Art Center, Minneapolis (p. 79-82 >Linja), Uwe Walter (p. 10-14

> mikro makro), Jon Wozencroft (p. 72/73 > Onko)

2009 by Mika Vainio and raster-noton

All rights reserved by the artist, the authors, the photographers and the publisher.

Respect copyright, encourage creativity!

Thanks to: Cindy van Acker, Gilles Amalvi, Micol Assal, Vronique Bacchetta, Ute Meta Bauer, Giulio Buono,

Hlose le Carvennec, Daniela Cascella, David Crawforth, Rachel Fleming-Mulford, Alain Gentil, Nicole

Gingras, Tommi Grnlund, Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Max Hollein, Jens Liebchen, Hayley Newman,

Carsten Nicolai, Hans-Ulrich Obrist, Anu Pennanen, Kai von Rabenau, Cristina Ricupero, Lars Siltberg, Paul

Smith, SouthStar Recorder Berlin, Mika Taanila, Eva Teppe, David Toop, Ilpo Visnen, Jill Vuchetich,

Rutger Wolfson, Jon Wozencroft

Made in Germany

ISBN 978-3-9812760-1-5

I M P R I N T

T R AC K L I ST C D 1: Mika Vainio. Time Examined

01 Ilmanvaihto 07:13

02 27 01:32

03 The Human Fly 03:09

04 Berns 05:46

05 Half Awake Half Asleep 04:04

06 Berlin Sound Chamber 09:31

07 3 Wall Clocks 02:29

08 Omert 07:10

09 Monumentti 01:56

10 Sondear 05:34

11 4 Radio 18:30

Total Time 67:33

All tracks originate from the installation and sound-

track pieces presented in this book. Track 04 was

composed for Lars Siltbergs Candleflames Modulated

(2007), track 09 for Anu PennanensA Monument ForThe Invisible (2003).

TR AC K L I ST CD 2: + noto. mikro makro

01 12:25

02 noto 10:05

03 11:55

04 noto 06:33

Total Time 40:58

This is a re-issue of the original CD on noton/

rastermusic, released in 1997.


14/30

48


15/30

49


16/30

50Mika Vainio (with Ilpo Visnen) | 2 50 Hz Thru Leslie Speaker| 2000

The work involves a Leslie speaker (originally designed for the Hammond organ) and two signal generating

oscillators that both have been set to 50 Hz, slightly out of tune to each other. The resulting interference beat

was sent through the Leslie speaker exploiting its revolving facility to add a rising and falling of overtones,

mixing to a siren-like noise in the exhibition space.


17/30

51


18/30

52


19/30

53


20/30

54


21/30

55Mika Vainio | Untitled | 1997

In the context of the exhibition Migrateurs XXI Mika produced a

small booklet with close-up photographs of the intestines of an old

radio like amplifier valves, condesators, etc. as well as the signs

and inscriptions on the display that mark the radio as a migrating

device that makes the listener travel through unknown territory.


22/30

56


23/30

57


24/30

58

Mika Vainio | 3 Wall Clocks | 2001

The installation 3 Wall Clocks pursues the exploration of the invisible. An object, sculpture and sound environment, this work is heard before it is

seen. Three regular wall clocks are mounted on the wall. Each clock is amplified through contact microphones recording the sound of the move-

ment of the minute hand. The hand moves only once every minute, and the sound of it shifting is run through a mixer connected to a FX reverb

unit and further played through a speaker. The clocks show the same time but are tuned slightly out of synch so that a sound from the moving

hands creates a [slow] rhythm that spreads through the space. This sound punctuates the time the visitor spends in the gallery, accompanying him

in the same way as other regular and cyclical sounds, such as heartbeats. At once a temporal and spatial reference, this regular sound of the minute

striking makes it possible to mark out a territory. by rhythm, too, listening ceases to be purely supervisory and becomes creation. Without

rhythm, no language is possible: the sign is based on an oscillation, that of the marked and the non-marked ...

Extract taken from Gingras, Nicole: Poussires/Particles; in: Gingras, Nicole (Ed.): Traces; Galerie Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery, 2006, p. 29/30


25/30

84


26/30

85


27/30

86Mika Vainio (with Ilpo Visnen) | Untitled | 2005

This piece was installed in De Vleeshall, which is located in an old meatmarket hall in Middelburg dating from the 17th century.

In order to have a connection with its history, Mika and Ilpo built a 24 meters metallic frame with 48 meathooks hanging from it and

24 meataxes lying beneath it on the floor. Additionally, they placed big air ventilation propellers to both ends of the structure to make

the hooks move in the stream of air they created and occasionally hitting the metal frame. The resulting sounds were picked up with

contact microphones and processed by various sound effects to finally be amplified into the room. On the opening evening they used

the set-up for a concert performance.


28/30

87


29/30

92Carsten Nicolai | | 1997

Opening performance of the -project at documenta X in Kassel, Germany

with Mika Vainio, Carsten Nicolai, Olaf Bender, Frank Bretschneider and Carl Michael von Hausswolff.


30/30

2

T I M E E X A M I N E D

Time Examined - RN109 [Preview]

Documents

Transcript of Time Examined - RN109 [Preview]