DIVINE ACCENTS OF OTHER VOICES
BY LAURITS JONGEJAN

03.10.2020 - 03.01.2021

The exhibition Divine Accents of Other Voices explores the relationship between humans and technology. Technology is part of almost every aspect of our daily lives and pervades the way we communicate and interact with one another. Quite often the impact of technology is viewed with ambivalence; on the one hand, technology has improved our quality of life, provided greater mobility and more freedom, while on the other hand it is threatening to turn us into increasingly rootless and displaced human beings.

The exhibited works contextualise ways in which art can offer new and alternative approaches to reflecting on the interaction between humans and technology.

DIVINE ACCENTS OF OTHER VOICES (2020)

At the heart of the exhibition, the work Divine Accents of Other Voices explores the voice as an artistic organ in a juxtaposition of human and computer-generated. Designed as a seven-channel chorus of synthetic voices, the work transcends the conditions essential to being human: the voices have no bodies, they never pause for breath and appear strange and alien to us.

Still, they have something to say to us. For what does it mean when the computer enters a domain which used to be the preserve of humans? What happens when technology raises its voice? Can these voices be perceived as something else or other than merely human?

A SHRINE OF SACRED FEAR (2019)

A Shrine of Sacred Fear explores the relationship between man and technology based on the religious notion of holy shrines as places where spiritual forces can be housed. At the heart of the work is a red core, which transforms digital codes into acoustic beats, filling the surrounding space with metallic sounds. The artist has enshrined his anxiety and fear in the inner core of this sculpture. The piece draws inspiration from traditional Japanese Shinto shrines, whose role is to be the home of a force or spirit. Thus, mysticism is discussed in the context of a modern world where man and technology interrelate on new terms.

TŌ (2018)

The triptych video-installation TŌ presents a mental landscape, where the absence of humans is everywhere, and a feeling of oppression arises in the face of the imminent future of the planet. Presenting pictures from the Arctic region and from the overpopulated city of Tokyo, the work creates static states as the tripartite soundscape engages with the bunker acoustics.

Laurits Jongejan is a Danish artist working within the field of sound installations, video art and electronic compositions. Throughout his practice, Jongejan is inspired by Japanese technology understandings, and explores alternative ways to relate to the things we surround ourselves with, including our relationship with technology, machines and physical objects.

Opening: 3 October 2020, 15 pm.
Exhibition period: 3 October 2020 – 3 January 2021.
Opening hours: Everyday from 10.00 to 17.00. Admission to Regelbau 411 is free.

The exhibition is curated by Matilde Best and Simon Thykjær.

The exhibition Divine Accents of Other Voices is supported by the Nordic Culture Fund, the foundation Færchfonden, Danish Composers’ Society, Danish Jazz, Beat and Folk Composers (DJBFA), and Struer – City of Sound.