9.16.2008

SYMMETRICS AT PECHA KUCHA MONTREAL!


This is a vid. of my presentation at the Pecha Kucha Montreal at the Society of Arts and Technology.
I was a little nervous because it was in front of a billion people and I had to scramble the presentation together that day so I didn't present it as eloquently as I had intended too, oops! But the reason why I was so nervous (well I wasn't super nervous but I was feeling a little unprepared)is the project gets so complicated because it touches so many different topics so it's hard for me to talk about because I'm still working on it! It was SO hard to cut it down into just 7 minutes, just briefly skimming the surface of much deeper ideas/theories/studies--BUT simply---my photography reinterpreted by me and Antonio Ringor. I'd rather perform it than talk about it, but, talking about it made a bunch of people check it out and listen to the music and the music was created with the same intention as art---for people to enjoy! :) VID by Catherine Morely.
Love, C


Here is how the presentation should have sounded:

SYMMETRICS
The synthesis of sound, vision-music, and art.

1. Hello my name is Christine Hale and I am a musician, designer, photographer, illustrator and writer/poet, an astronaut and a garbage man. Okay, not those two things but metaphorically speaking I’m exploring the universe of creativity and moving stuff around (which is what garbage men and women, do). Most of my work is created under the name Love, Christine, because my work is made with love--with the hope to inspire, enlighten and make people feel good through healing and change. But that is a completely different Pecha Kucha presentation called “empathetic creation and interpretive studies”. Tonight I shall be talking about one my latest projects called SYMMETRICS.

2. Symmetrics is name of my project (it acts as the title of the photography as a whole and also the band name), but it also much larger concept. Symmetrics creates an atmosphere that stimulates the audience to not only take part in what is created visually, but also to become involved in the experience emotionally. It’s about utilizing different arts and senses, working together to inspire the interpretation of a single concept. I could call this project Synesthesia, but symmetry is the most important factor, which you’ll learn more out about later.

3. In this case, the logo and tagline defines Symmetrics as the “synthesis of sound and vision, music and art”. Here I’ve created what I call the “transformation logo” which pretty much gives a visual of the concept: two different ideas merge, balance, and create something new--which expands outward, growing-- and eventually reconnects, just like the infinity symbol. We are inspired to create by other creations which were also made from inspiration, thus: CREATION>INSPIRATION-so the cycle continues.

4. The project initially began with my photography. I wanted to capture natural and man-made/industrial architecture working together, an image of beauty. To further express this idea, I arranged the photographs symmetrically—which I feel actualizes and represents my idea of beauty. The fundamental rule of Symmetry is a balance and harmonious arrangement which creates beauty—another concept/definition obviously significant to the name of the project, Symmetrics.

5. I created a contrast between night and day so that both extremes could be felt. So here we have a very stark, modern building, surrounded by fog. It blends together to create a dreamy outer space feeling--an empty and cold kind of silvery beauty.

6. And here we have the night photographs with the tree as the main focus highlighted with the man-made lights and stop lights-which has created a warm glowing sensational beauty.

7. During the set up for one of my gallery shows, I started to realize that these photographs had not only warmth and emotional value, but also they created sound. This inspired me to bring the visual experience to another level by creating music that sounded like the photographs.

8. I contacted my friend Antonio Ringor who is a very talented musician and we set to the task of reinterpreting the photographs using synesthesia and symmetry. We both play many instruments (I play the cello, violin, piano, clarinet, etc.) and he is talented pianist and guitar player and music theorist-so we had many tools (or musical paints) to work with. I really love working with acoustic instruments because the way you experience them is different from synth and the way their sound waves affect you are more emotional-- which conveys my intent.

9. We placed the photographs in front of us and then I would instantaneously come up with a tone or melody based on the composition, color, or movement within the photograph. For example, I looked at this picture and said: this sounds like this (sound) or I would say “what is the sound of grey”? (sound). Then we chose an instrument and tone and recorded it.

10. The music is based on loops and layers-so it still has a symmetrical foundation-which I think falls under the minimalist school, but eventually grows and changes,
using different schools of music and merging them together. For example this song starts off with a repetitive loop but then at the end I’m singing jazz riffs. (play music)

11. As I continued to research the symmetrical qualities of sound and color (frequencies and wavelengths), I stumbled upon the world of sound and color therapy and healing. So-there is yet another element to the project with includes a barely audible layer of “healing”. Perhaps you might have heard of Masaru Emoto who did the studies on positive and negative thought energy and how it affected water crystals. His purpose was to show that even our thoughts have an energy and effect and positive thoughts create beauty.

12. There is layer of “thought”, where I found a crystal bowl player to intensify my positive thought waves and I sat next to the mic and imagined the words love, peace, happiness, joy. I visualized the audience feeling good when they listened to the music in different situations. I know it’s a very abstract concept, and I’m not sure it will have any effect, but, my intention is to really change the viewer (positively) through my art. Right now those layers are being mixed and mastered into the tracks, so what is available is missing that element, except for the last track—that track was intended to inspire. You don’t need certain instruments to do sound healing, you only need to have the right intention and focus.

13. Now, I’d like to focus more on the process. The music is just like the photographs in that they can’t just be listened to by passing glance, there are so many things that make up the song by the end and so many twists and turns. Some songs abruptly end or change quickly, others keep a continual flow and glow so it is important the viewer has a chance to make time for each song and photograph.

14. In doing so—in sitting there and really focusing on both music and art-you end up getting lost in another world, a place where you can become inspired or create something based of your experience; To say something, to make something, to play music. To find creativity in another way.

15. Which is another of my main goals in this project: to inspire audience participation. The performance consists of the framed photography, so the viewers have a chance to get a closer look at it, while it is also projected on the wall behind us so the viewer can follow the color/structure composition.

16. Then we perform the music with timed loops and tracks. Ideally I wanted the performance to be as raw and real and live as possible-but, hopefully in the future I can create what I like to call my “intuitive orchestra” and the entire thing can be as true to the moment.

17. There is a website with the music and the artwork displayed called www.symmetics.org and I’m encouraging people to submit their work. So far I have a fellow in London, Joseph Scott, who by chance stumbled upon the project and was so inspired he created music based on the photography and an artist in Tokyo, Smith, who listened to the music and drew at the same time and even a musician here, JP St. from Sweet Mother Logic, who remixed some of the music and I added new vocal tracks to it! As you can see the INSPIRATION>CREATION cycle of Symmetrics is in full swing!

18. The idea is to grow from this project and include everyone! To travel to different cities and have shows with artists and musicians displaying their work as well and to have those viewers become inspired from their creations-to have many different bands called Symmetrics all following the same rules of creation.

19. We create art to express something, whether we know it or not, and while this project was done lucidly and free flowing, the main intention behind it was intended for audience to develop and experience emotional empathy and in that I hope they experience something new and different and become inspired to create.

20. It’s all about Inspiration, working together, knowing we continually contribute to the pool of art/music/creativity which in turn contributes to the growth and evolution of society--for the better.

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