SAW 2022 - Insulate

TWO-CHANNEL SOUND INSTALLATION

Planeswalker

SINGAPORE ART WEEK 2022

It's my party and I'll cry if I want to, you would cry too if it happened to you

THE PROJECTOR SINGAPORE

Curated by Louis Ho

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WHEN
12 January – 6 February 2022

VENUE
The Projector (Golden Mile Tower branch)

OPENING HOURS
4 PM to 10.30 PM (Mondays to Fridays),
1 PM to 10.30 PM (weekends and public holidays).

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Insulate is a sonic installation informed by the soundscapes of filmic utopias and dystopias, including The Color of Pomegranates (1969), Blade Runner (1982), Blade Runner 2049 (2017), and Dune (2021). Employing a varied range of aural sources, ranging from found noise to synthesized and performed sounds, the work presents various auditory configurations of the happiness ideal. As the artist puts it: “I explore different imaginations of  an escape from the unhappiness of daily life, the small bits of unhappiness that collectively adds up over time and builds a sort of debt of happiness that weighs us down continuously over time.”  The sonic conjuring of this happiness debt is channeled through the diegetic worlds of cinema, asking the fundamental question: “To what extent does sound seal us within these worlds, demanding a suspension of disbelief to remain within?”

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I. A ritualistic scene in an alien land. The air is foreign, the materials are rare, of a different nature. Patterns of repetition in movement, garments that reveal a certain form of culture. An escape perhaps, or a peering into the gateway of another reality?

II. Exotic melancholy, farmed string sonics. A slow interjection, a consistent ground bass stretched and its form and function pulled apart. Pushing, pulling, an everlasting sinking, but still trudging forward.

III. Mother nature, wrath and a turning of the wheel. Oblivious to the musings of man-kind. It goes on, regardless. An ebb and flow, a turning of the wheel.

IV. Akira. A tribute. A reveration to the inspiration that is the musical collective Geinoh Yamashirogumi. Synthesized organic elements combined with exalting synth voices.

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LISTEN TO A PREVIEW

01 Resonance in the Air

SINGLE RELEASE

STREAM HERE

"Instinct is a lie, told by a fearful body, hoping to be wrong."

"Let go your earthly tether. Enter the void. Empty, and become wind."

"New growth cannot exist without first the destruction of the old."

Exclusive additional track Let Go Your Earthly Tether available via Bandcamp.

Artwork by Clifford Chong

00 Entity EP

Entity EP is a curative journey of metamorphosis through the ether between dark and light.

The four track EP by electronic producer Mervin Wong explores a narrative of epic but intimate sensibilities. The EP opens with Submarine, a haunting prelude that descends into subterranean depths. Entity, the illuminating title track is an enduring act of deliverance — a chorus of sweeping vocals transporting you to celestial planes. First bloom takes us adrift, impressions of a deep awakening emerge from cosmic panoramas. Return, gently closes the loop, easing us toward a homecoming that is bittersweet yet restorative.

Artwork by Splithalo

00 Perihelion EP

“[Perihelion] was created at a time when I’ve chosen to channel my efforts and energy into producing and creating outwardly. By seeking externally in my artistic practice, I feel a sense of coming into myself – cutting archetypes that have affected me more deeply than I’ve been conscious about. It’s an exciting realm to be in. I can’t wait to share my own version of a sound experience that’s artistically treated in terms of sound, visual design and performance.” – Mervin Wong

Perihelion is a solo record written, recorded, arranged and produced by electronic producer Mervin Wong. The EP features four tracks over 20 minutes, focusing on a diverse pallet of sounds with sampled strings, field recordings, textures, synthesizers and electronic instruments.

Artwork by Izwan Abdullah / Such A Mood