Music from (half of) Lemon Jelly and interactive visuals from Airside at The Walker Art Gallery!
Oh, I am so, so looking forward to this year’s Biennial.
STEP INSYDE
Biennial installation for the Walker Art Gallery
16 September – 26 November 2006
The Walker Art Gallery is delighted to present Insyde – a unique interactive installation created by multi-disciplinary design collective, Airside. The artwork is specially commissioned for the fourth Liverpool Biennial.
The piece is designed specifically for the upper hall in the Walker – a spectacular marble- lined thoroughfare between galleries that is part of the original building, dating from 1877. The installation responds to the atmosphere and architecture of the area and the movement of people passing through it.
Insyde envelops the exterior and interior of a large, cubed space built within four existing neo-classical columns. On entering the space, visitors are transported to a fantasy world– a mixture of actual and virtual objects where the distinction between reality and fantasy is blurred.
The world is styled as a futuristic woodland glade, comprising a mixture of real world objects, wall projections and music. Fred, who is one half of dance act Lemon Jelly, has specially composed this music for Insyde and it is an integral part of the piece.
As the viewer immerses in the environment, they meet the animated inhabitants of the glade. Creatures gradually emerge from the projections until they become clearly visible, reacting to motion detected by sensors built into the structure.
But, the inhabitants are shy. Sudden movements can scare them back into the undergrowth. They respond only to slow, gentle movement from individuals, encouraging viewer and inhabitant to come to an understanding, which in turn, allows for a scene to fully unfold. The experience between the gallery’s visitors and the inhabitants is almost that of discovering an alien tribe – both groups keenly yet cautiously observe one another and it requires patience and coaxing if the creatures and their world are to be fully revealed.
Ann Bukantas, curator of fine art at National Museums Liverpool, says: “Insyde is a unique and intriguing artwork that our visitors will need a combination of patience and curiosity to fully explore. The installation reflects Airside’s ability to push at creative and technical boundaries. It makes an innovative yet enchanting piece that will complement both the historic interior of the gallery and the diversity of work on show in Liverpool, during the Biennial.
“Given the city’s musical past, it is also exciting that Fred Deakin is composing a new piece of music which forms an important part of Insyde. This element of the work really captures the contemporary spirit of the Biennial“.
Insyde is exhibited throughout the Liverpool Biennial, the UK’s biggest contemporary art festival, alongside the John Moores 24 exhibition.