Artifacts I: Zero Input Enclosure Movement (ZIEM)

Artist: AO Roberts (Winnipeg)

On Curation Mentorship Project

Curated by Anju Singh (Vancouver)‍

Mentor: Raven Chacon (Diné)

Pre-show artist chat moderated by Anju Singh at 7:15 PM

Zero Input Enclosure Movement (ZIEM) is a multichannel sculptural sound installation created by Winnipeg-based artist AO Roberts that was originally presented in SICKROOM at the University of Manitoba’s Art Gallery in 2022. For this presentation, Roberts will create a second iteration of the work following a residency at What Lab.

The concert will open with an opportunity for audience members to engage with the sounds generated by no-input feedback loops produced by the pipes and small amplifiers that are integrated into the sculptural piece.  Following this, guest artists Sainerine and RITUAL PURIFICATION will create an improvised, responsive performance in collaboration with the installation.

ZIEM amplifies unstable systems of feedback and drone within a provisional sculptural structure, engaging the sonic architectures of property, healing, and control, and drawing from Roberts’ research into the 18th-century British land enclosure movement. Using a zero-input mixing technique (where a sound system’s output is fed back into its input), ZIEM produces oscillating drones that echo the immersive tones of a sound bath yet drift into the spectral persistence of MRIs, HVAC systems, and power transformers.

Artist Talk with Giorgio Magnanensi, Artistic Director of Vancouver New Music, and curator Anju Singh starts at 7:15 pm.

This is the first edition of Anju Singh’s new series ARTIFACTS, a presentation series of sound architectures, installations, and sculptures in timed performance/concert settings. The series centres the works themselves as central performers either standalone or in collaboration with other performers. By moving these works from galleries or installation-only contexts into timed listening spaces, ARTIFACTS fuses visitor and sound contributor experiences.

This event is part of On Curation, a two-year mentorship project led by Vancouver New Music that supports experimental and forward-thinking approaches to sound and music curation. Mentors have been paired with emerging Canadian curators with a focus on deep, one-on-one exchanges that explore new models of curatorial practice to generate accessible and socially engaged programming.

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Masks are preferred and will be provided.

A scent-free policy is in effect.

This will be a relaxed performance.

Read the Access Guide here.

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Banner: AO Roberts by Robert Szcolnicki