Stirring

(2007-2008, color/sound, for projection, 3:59)
Video by Rebecca C. Adams Sound by Violet a.k.a. Jeff Surak

This collaboration reinterprets the conceptual and structural characteristics of Kenneth Noland's 1959 painting Split. The phases of the piece occur when instances of exposed canvas establish concentric regions of color. These colors are restrained, the acrylic is thin, and alternating shapes activate the relationships between the hues. The perimeter demonstrates organic pigmentation without the use of brushstroke, and its compositional integrity captures the essence of circular motion. The structure of Split also conjures the notion of traveling inwards, and toward the focal point of the blue circle in the exact center of the piece. Stirring translates the potential energy of Noland's painting into an experience of simultaneous motion and stasis, sound and silence. The organization of its individual components is a rough rendering of the concentric phases of Split, a framework that allowed both contributors to calibrate the process. The video tracks a marble as it ascends and descends a tiered ramp, the object is centered within a square frame, and the action is viewed at an average rate of 3 frames per second. Oversaturated hues and blacks create expressionistic compositions within each consecutive frame, while the intensity of the momentum determines the palette and subject of these fleeting paintings. The audio of Stirring uses layered tracks of skipping viola phrases, and its auditory fragmentation mirrors the sense of predictability and anticipation caused by the stuttering progress of the marble. This sonic element encounters moments of ambiance, yet its overall mood heightens the emotional experience of the colors through an array of dissonant pitches within a limited tonal range. A high-pitched frequency over muted harmonics signals the epiphany of the piece, in which the marble transitions from ascending to descending – from potential to kinetic energy.