Following on from the initial research, we commissioned three artists to respond to our findings through their pratice. The artworks reflect on themes around perception, touch, multisensory loss and inclusivity, and shed a new light on the our experiences of the world as channeled through our senses.
Stephen Hollingsworth
Stephen is a visual artist based in Glasgow. He holds an MFA from the Glasgow School of Art as well as PhD from Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. His creative practice is strongly influenced by his long-standing work with people with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD). In his artistic work, he focusses on creating temporary aesthetic spaces using sound, vibration, light and movement to design moments of interaction, connection and meaning. Trying to interpret and imagine the internal perceptual worlds of the people he works with influences his artwork and thinking considerably. He is especially interested in how we form meaning in and of the world through our sensory inputs.
For his commissioned work, Stephen is producing a multi-sensory installation that combines video, sound and touch. The work connects different ideas such as our increased reliance on electronic media during and after the coronavirus pandemic with a reflection on human perception, the importance of touch and the physicality of sound. It takes the pixel as a starting point for a sensory journey toward the ‘inner space’ of pre-cognition subjectivity. The work is intended to create a dialogue on perception and the act of perceiving and creating meaning.
Katya Nosyreva
Katya Nosyreva is an artist, maker, and researcher based in Devon, UK. She holds an MA in Visual and Islamic Traditional Arts as well as a PhD from the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts, London. She works with porcelain clay exploring its unique translucent qualities and the visual and symbolic language of geometry. Katya’s current research focuses on the historical development and reception of Islamicate geometric patterns. Her particular interest lies in the extant medieval manuscripts on geometry and architectural scrolls where diagrams and text elucidate and obscure our understanding of the transmission of architectural knowledge.
For her commissioned work, Katya is exploring perception and touch through geometry, numbers, and Braille as tactile diagrams. She is developing a series of works on paper, and eventually clay which will be accessible to both vision-impaired and sighted audiences alike. They will be based on magic squares and their fascinating historical context.
A magic square is a square divided into a number of cells in which natural numbers, all different, are arranged in such a way that the same sum is found in horizontal and vertical rows, as well as in the two main diagonals. Historically, magic squares have been variously considered as number games, mathematical puzzles, or planetary talismans with occult properties. Here they are reproduced in Braille, as a code based on six dots where numbers are represented by the same Braille symbols as the alphabet.
In the work, connections are also drawn between the magic squares and the seven planetary spheres (i.e. the seven planets visible with a naked eye).
Each square is associated with a particular planet and corresponding colour in an ascending order within the geocentric worldview, prevalent in the medieval world. The magic squares are extrapolated from odd and even squares grids, and are reproduced with numbers and Braille dots following the construction methods presented by the 10th century mathematicians Abu’l-Wafaʾ al-Buzjani and Alı ibn Ahmad al-Antaki. The work also makes reference to the Persian narrative poem The Brides of the Seven Climes or Haft Paykar by the 12th century Persian poet Nezami who eloquently elucidated the connections between different planets and colours, as well as metals and days of the week.
Perception of colour, especially in vision-impaired audiences, is highly individual. To reflect this, Katya’s work projects the images of magic squares onto Braille magic squares to create a multi-layered experience through sight and touch. While the work reproduces a specific system of correlations between colours, planets and days, audience members are encouraged to consider their own impressions and associations.
- 3 x 3 square of the Moon – Green – Monday.
- 4 x 4 square of Mercury – Turquoise/Blue – Wednesday.
- 5 x 5 square of Venus – White – Friday.
- 6 x 6 square of the Sun – Yellow – Sunday.
- 7 x 7 square of Mars – Red – Tuesday.
- 8 x 8 square of Jupiter – Sandalwood – Thursday.
- 9 x 9 square of Saturn – Black – Saturday.
Jan Hendrickse
Jan Hendrickse is an artist, performer, researcher and educator. His research engages a hybridity of approach and epistemic method while his sound practice spans improvisation, experimental composition, sound art as well as Classical Ottoman music. He teaches at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and holds a PhD in composition. His research explores the idea of Respiratory Aesthetics as a way to understand sound and listening practices.
He has recently returned from Nepal where he has been working on a collaboration with Nepali musicians and electronic musicians from the UK. He is a multi-instrumentalist and instrument builder, as well as performing on many traditional instruments. He is a featured woodwind soloist on many well known film scores (including The Lord of the Rings, Apocalypto, Chocolat, The Hunger Games and many others) and has performed live with a wide range of artists such as Mark Fell, David Toop, Ornette Coleman and Nitin Sawhney.
For his commissioned work, Jan is developing a sound work.