Ekumendesigned by Olivier Girouard, Jonathan Villeneuve and Ottoblixin collaboration with Générique Design, Jérôme Roy and Thomas Ouellet Fredericks
Loop
On display Nov. 9–18
This illuminated musical installation, featuring a distinctive retro-futuristic look, invites members of the public to sit inside a series of six cylinders, each measuring 6.5 feet in diameter, and activate the mechanisms, causing beautiful images to come to life. Loop is a cross between a music box, a zoetrope, and a railway handcar. When visitors work the lever together, the cylinder starts spinning and lights up as a series of still images inspired by 13 different fairy tales appear to move. A flickering strobe effect accompanies the black and white images, similar to early movies. The speed at which the images move, the frequency of the flickering and the tempo of the music are determined by how fast the participants move the lever.
Conception and execution: Olivier Girouard, Jonathan Villeneuve and Ottoblix
Production: Ekumen and Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, Montreal, Canada
Artist Bio
Ekumen is a production company based in Montreal with a primary focus on sound and media art. For the past decade, the organization has put sound in perspective in diverse contexts, from public installations to concerts and other live performances.
Olivier Girouard is the artistic director of Ekumen. He is a producer and promoter of audio works who strives to reinvent our relationship with hearing by working with artists in dance and visual arts.
Jonathan Villeneuve is an artist who creates poetic machines by assembling familiar materials and giving them new functions. His works move, emit light, and make sounds, allowing viewers to come to their own conclusions about the device’s imaginary function.
Ottoblix has more than a decade of experience with multidisciplinary projects, having built a loyal clientele through creativity, attention to client needs, and the creation of customs teams for each project.
Générique Design is a studio that creates specialized objects for digital art, interactive design, and public installations. It has worked on several projects in collaboration with the Quartier des Spectacles Parternship.
Photo credit: Loop, a conception and execution by Olivier Girouard, Jonathan Villeneuve and Ottoblix. Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, Montreal. Photo: Ulysse Lemerise / OSA