« Solitude Silence – Un espace vaste et désert rappelant la banquise près du cercle polaire. Soudain, un homme émerge de la surface blanche, entreprenant une marche lente, se fondant complètement dans le paysage. Dans la cour pavée de l’Institut suédois, Thomas Bjelkeborn, compositeur de musique électronique, et Michael Larsson, compositeur visuel, présentent une nouvelle version in situ de Solitude Silence à travers une double performance live, sonore et visuelle. »
“Solitude Silence has a desolate setting, it is vast and empty at the same time as there are movements occupying the visual and audible space. A white washed-out surface and the slow structures of sound has no less characteristics than one which is busy. In this, there is an emergence of a being embodied with the space. One can sense dislocation and perceive disappearance. The movement however, being utterly organic and integrated with space, provides layers of continuity of a different time.”
Production
Artistic concept and project development – Thomas Bjelkeborn
Production and copyright – Sound Department AB Sweden
This project started in year 2006 as an all-in high risk adventure in search for the perfect snowstorm, a complete whiteout. For three years various filmteams followed the crossdisciplinary artist Thomas Bjelkeborn on 10 very dangerous stormhunting expeditions in -20 deg and 40 m/s winds on top of the high flatland of Ramundberget in the north of Sweden. Starting during autumn 2008 Thomas Bjelkeborn prepared a selection from the project to be displayed as a video installation at Moviken International Art Exhibition 2009 Sweden. During the summer of 2010 Michael Larsson joined Thomas Bjelkeborn in a residency at Nuit Bleue Elektrophonie in Arc-et-Senans France. During a blistering heatwave and heavy thunderstorm began a journey, now within the mysterious and enchanting visual and sounding world of the gathered material from the snowstorms. Thomas Bjelkeborn and Michael Larsson developed the project into a modern and experimental nonlinear realtime work of digital art deeply rooted in the scandinavian psyche.
Solitude-Silence, experimental live performance project 2010/2011
All post production and artistic work is based on sound and video from the film sessions.
Co-produced by Thomas Bjelkeborn and Michael Larsson.
Performances
Nuit Blanche Arc-et-Senans France, july 2010
S.LOW festival 2010 Berlin Germany, july 2010
Fylkingen Stockholm Sweden, december 2010
Västerås Night of Culture Sweden, march 2011
Nuit Blanche, Paris France, october 2011
The Great White Open, Moviken International Art 2009
Video exhibit, artistic work based on sound and video from the film sessions
Produced by Thomas Bjelkeborn
Main filmprojekt 2007-2008. 7 sessions
First team, 1 session
Director/Actor – Thomas Bjelkeborn
Co-director/Camera – Viktor Eriksson
Assistant – Simon Åberg
Second team, 5 sessions
Director/Actor – Thomas Bjelkeborn
Co-director/Camera – Simon Åberg
Various Assistants
Third team, 1 session
Director/Actor – Thomas Bjelkeborn
Co-director/Camera – Joel Olsson
Each session lasted for 2-4 days of work at location in Ramundberget Sweden.
Test project 2006, 3 sessions
Director – Thomas Bjelkeborn
Camera – Poke Stolt
Actor – Bengt Andersson
Sponsors
Peak Performance Whiteout SPL produktion AB
October 2011
For the 2011 edition of Nuit Blanche in Paris we were asked by Institut Suédois to install our audiovisual piece – Solitude Silence – in their space. We spent about five days building a complex mesh of fishing wire and hanging mosquito nets attached to a multitude of anchoring points. These surfaces would then be used for a multi-layered projection in conjunction with a wide facade projection. We then performed the audiovisual piece for six hours (multiple cycles) and to our surprise we got a massive response! 6700 people in six hours, many of which stayed for a full cycle!
Here are some photos taken by our friend Sébastien Chatron
5 Stills from Solitude Silence for publication purposes.
5x TIFF 300 DPI, 89,9 MB
“© 2005-2011 Solitude Silence” or “All images courtesy of Solitude Silence” must be present when images are published.