The Spectral Trilogy

A series of three interconnected sculptures, The Spectral Trilogy implies the pervasiveness and significance of electromagnetism in our lives.

The Spectral Trilogy was born out of several concepts; the human body as instrument, non-existence of silence, spatial influence, and the re-contextualization of the mundane.

Artist's appropriation of the Electromagnetic Spectrum can be traced to it's scientific discovery. The omnipresence of the invisible rays offers creative inspiration and valuable resources from which to work. Nikola Tesla, John Cage, and Nam June Paik are but a few artists who have explored the Electromagnetic Spectrum in their art. The works they created uncloaked the Electromagnetic Spectrum, exposing it to the people, capturing their imaginations and helping to usher in an age of scientific discovery.

Those who do not think of the influence the Electromagnetic Spectrum has on them.

The Spectral Trilogy is three objects sitting on pedestals standing four feet tall. In the center is a cage (6"x8"x6") with a radio tuned to Bloomberg Radio, quietly playing static. On either side a plexi box houses the exposed electronics of a television and vacuum tube AM radio. The TV on the left (6"x8"x6") is playing a short, looping video piece with quotes about the electromagnetic spectrum by Marshall McLuhan and John Cage. The radio on the right (8"x8"x6") is slowly tuning up and down the band emitting AM artifacts. A lever sits before the three objects, begging to be pulled. The mood is calming. Once the lever is pulled, the cage slowly exposes the radio to the air, eventually replacing static with business news. The television begins to flicker and scroll. The AM radio erratically tunes, making the AM artifacts more noticeable. As the cage returns to its starting position, the initial serenity resumes. That is, until the lever is pulled again.

A series of three sculptures, my project is inspired by the natural interference of the Electromagnetic Spectrum to suggest the significance of its power over nature, technology, and art. A motorized Faraday Cage housing a radio rhythmically opens and closes, video is manipulated by exploiting interference, and AM artifacts are 'performed' by an oscillating motor. Each piece reflects its susceptibility to the Electromagnetic Spectrum illuminating this invisible force on the physical world surrounding them and hopefully re-contextualizing their own consumption of electromagnetism in the process.

The pervasiveness of the Electromagnetic Spectrum makes it a rich resource from which to work. The Spectral Trilogy conceptually makes tangible that which is physically intangible. In doing so, the link between our bodies and our environment is exposed, allowing us to re-examine the influence of this symbiotic relationship.