'That Which Devours and Dissolves'

'That Which Devours and Dissolves' Stenersen Museet, Oslo from Jade Boyd on Vimeo.

That Which Devours and Dissolves, (Mixed media; Analogue video mixer, DVD, Behringer effects pedal, water, lava, crystals, glass, black ink, plastic, steam), Dimensions variable. Kunstakademiet i Oslo Masters Exhibition 2010, Stenersen Museet, Oslo, Norway.

The title of the work is taken from the H.P. Lovecraft story From Beyond (1920), in which a 'mad Scientist' invents a machine capable of opening up the spectrum by generating waves that act on the pineal gland, allowing unseen dimensions and life forms to be perceived.
In the installation there is an implied symbiotic relationship between the electronic signal (sound/ radio waves or video projection/ light) and the organic material (the salt crystals forming on the lava which is semi-submerged in black water shrouded in a layer of mist), with the idea that the crystals continue to form in relation to the electronic signal and light over the duration of the exhibition.
The sound of the installation also displays ‘naturally’ occurring principals in sound and machinery- feedback. The sound comes from the connection of the DVD player to the analogue AV mixer that mediated the video (DVD) signal. The sound is interference from this connection and the machinery around it. It is processed through an effects pedal (allowing for the sound to be extended, adding reverb or delay). I am able to alter the sound during the exhibition.
The DVD signal is also mediated by experimental connections, feeding its signal back on itself, creating an unstable image. This creates the rainbow spectrum of colours that appear as light projected onto the plastic and within the installation. The two altered image sources from the DVD player are mixed and affected by a pattern generator on the mixer. The projection is deflected around the room by the use of angled mirrors that disperse the light and flickering shadows around the room.

'Vulkan'
http://www.nrk.no/kultur_og_underholdning/1.7134196