the-possible-impossible-thing-of-sound: Biophilia

Description:

Biophilia was an audio-visual installation in the Grand Luxe Hall by Julie Andreyev and Simon Lysander Overstall. Positioning animal, plant, and human players as collaborators, the project was modelled on the daily rhythms of coastal old growth forests. 

Biophilia was produced using acoustic ecology, music composition, call and response, noise, video art, and computational aesthetics. Working on-site at Fillongley Provincial Park on Denman Island, Canada, Andreyev and Overstall produced video and field recordings of the Coastal Douglas-fir ecosystem. Using theremin and biomimicry techniques, Andreyev produced responses to these sounds, revealing a pattern of animal communication and human intervention within the biodiverse habitat of the forest. The audio component of the installation was played through custom software designed by Overstall, while crossfading video documentation simulated the experience of being in the forest—a place where everything organically transforms, including perception. 

Biophilia was presented in conjunction with ISCM World New Music Days 2017, and as part of the-possible- impossible-thing-of-sound—a sound installation series at Western Front that investigated real and imagined sounds beyond the hearing spectrum.

Presented with the support of Canada Council for the Arts, British Columbia Arts Council, Canadian Heritage, The City of Vancouver, BC Gaming, SOCAN Foundation, Emily Carr University of Art + Design, ISCM World New Music Days 2017, and Music on Main.