Title: Barbican – Frequency and Volume (Rafael Lozano-Hemmer)
Rating (out of 100): 80
Mood: childlike, exploratory, curious
Timeout / Culture Critic: http://www.timeout.com/london/art/event/9218/robert-capa.html / na
Barbican (Curve Gallery) - Frequency and Volume: The Curve gallery is a unique space in the Barbican, which is in the shape of a giant curve. By its very nature, it often is the place for some rather unique installations. The current multimedia installation by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer is no exception. Using his education background in Physical Chemistry, Lozano-Hemmer focuses on how technology surrounds us (even when it is invisible) in modern day and how often we are giving up our privacy as a result. I have to admit, at first, I was a bit prejudiced against the show. I saw a bunch of projections and a huge long leaflet explaining the show and the artist’s background and thought to myself, “Here we go again, another set of so called art that takes longer to explain than appreciate.” I often find that the longer something is explained, the more its energy and interest is sucked out of it. But I was wrong. Upon walking in, you realize that you hear multiple sounds simultaneously from various broadcasts and radio stations and other frequencies (some with good reception and some not). What is unique is how the artist engages the audience to not just be a passive viewer in the exhibition but to create their own visual and auditory experience. Each viewer is able to create various shadows (which correspond to different sounds captured on the frequencies) as he/she walks around the exhibition. While the “wow” factor wears off after a few minutes, it is an interesting idea and a novel way to urge the viewer to participate in the show. Overall, some very interesting work.
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