SWAN SONG
an immersive reflection on the climate crisis, by Magical Trash Mountain
Enter, if you will, a room, dimly lit by an antique amber glow. Once your eyes start to acclimate, you look around. The small, cozy room is lined with antique radios. The walls: covered in ornate botanical wallpaper, and adorned with a selection of robustly framed propaganda artworks; manically pitching contradictory rallying cries about climate change.
One of the radios clicks on. Early jazz slithers soothingly out of its speaker. A glow emanates from the radio. Kneeling down to investigate, you’re perplexed by a wall of lush vegetation where the speaker should be.
You approach another radio to investigate. It turns on, also playing jazz; this one accommodating a craggy grotto.
6 radios.
Each a sanctuary, a shrine, to nature.
Each playing its swan song. Simultaneously.
Cacophony.
Someone walks in, and the music gets louder.
A group enters. The volume is almost unbearable.
👆 Some examples of the climate change propaganda that will be hanging around the room.
👇3D renderings of the proposed installation.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Room can be about 12’x12’ (ballpark...I'm flexible on this). Walls sturdy enough to handle several (approx 25 sturdy wood framed 2D artworks), min 3” thick wall with drywall, preferably insulated. opening/entrance should be as pictured in my floorplan. Insulation in the wall and a door into the space will help to keep the sound contained and prevent disruption of other neighboring installations.
SOUND: each radio will play early jazz songs which correspond to its grotto's theme (flora, fauna, geological resources, water, air, etc). the more crowded the room, the louder the jazz will be (though capped at a decibel level that will stay in the insulated room...preserving participants' suspension of disbelief in my installation as well as neighboring installations). An empty room will be silent. Nature's swan song can only be heard when there is someone there to hear it.
For color and lighting reference please see: https://www.behance.net/gallery/85988049/Make-yourself-at-homean-immersive-surrealist-space (another immersive installation project in which I debuted my prototype nature grotto console radio). I will be using the same color temperature lighting (though a bit dimmer for this installation), and a similar warm clay wall color. I may consider including houseplants (artificial but convincing, to keep my materials consistent) to soften the corners of the space and make it more inviting. Each radio will have a an original assemblaged objet d'arte attached to the top of it, hinting at the theme of the grotto within.
The radios and lights in the room will require power. Each radio has a microcontroller that controls its internal lights and the volume of the audio. Above the room, there will be cameras reading how many people are in the room and their location within the room. This data will be used to control the audio level.
Wallpaper: floral and animal print wallpaper will cover the walls of the room. I will be using wallpaper made by a company out of San Francisco called called Half Full. A portion of their proceeds go to animal protection efforts.
Materials: radios, paint for walls, framed collages, chairs, bench, amber LED lightbulbs for dim ambient light,
walls (preferably insulated), access to power (to plug in 6 radios and a few floor lamps), overhead lighting (if available for spotlighting a few of the collages...though not necessary. the room needs to be pretty dimly lit to best view the radio grottoes and make the installation most immersive). Optional: door.
please contact me with any questions: magicaltrashmountain@gmail.com
ABOUT MAGICAL TRASH MOUNTAIN:
Contemporary art is a mining and refining operation. It’s a remix. A reinterpretation of the products of capitalism, and capitalism has so many products…and so much waste. Contemporary makers and creatives sit atop this mountain of trash and treasure. It empowers us. We are masters of the hoard.
I'm Magical Trash Mountain, collage and immersive installation artist. I'm Magical Trash Mountain: collage/Installation artist by trade, sculptor and landscape designer by training (MFA in Sculpture & Immersive Art). No matter the medium: immersive installation, meditative garden, assemblage, or collage; my passion is to create memorable experiences.
Every day, I mine the hoard for new treasure. Once I've collected the raw materials I need, the refining process begins.
The archival nature of my process allows me to use flotsam and jetsam from the past to explore contemporary topics such as: late stage capitalism and its impact on anthropogenic climate change/habitat destruction, queer culture, portraiture in mixed and new media, and the creative process as it pertains to Surrealism.
–🌈🗑🏔
👆in-progress shots: tearing apart the broken radios and bringing them back to life.
1st: hydrate & restore the wood and bakelite. repair/replace any damaged veneer.
2nd: remove the non-functional & antiquated electronics. Replace with contemporary equipment. Install sensors to make the piece interact with exhibition participants.
3rd: replace speakers and build grotto.
4th: seal the piece to keep dust out but still allow sound to resonate.
