Gordon Monahan: Music From Everywhere

September 11 to November 6, 2005

The Art Centre presented Music From Everywhere by internationally-celebrated Canadian-born sound/intermedia artist Gordon Monahan.  The exhibition featured two innovative installations Music From Nowhere and When It Rains, as well as a montage of video-recorded performances by Monahan, available for individual viewing.  Music From Nowhere comprised gutted speaker cabinets, retro-fitted with mechanical sound-generating devices, some of which were shown for the first time in Canada.  The work challenged popular assumptions about the production and presentation of sound and music.  The site-specific installation When It Rains consisted of computer-controlled water droplets which fell on a series of highly amplified, suspended objects and resulted in a series of percussive rhythms.  For the opening performance, Monahan played a theremin, an instrument that detects body capacitance and produces a secondary audio track similar to the sound of a UFO in a 1950s sci-fi film. 

Monahan’s work spans numerous artistic genres ranging from avant-garde concert music to multi-media installation and performance art.  He has performed and presented his work throughout North America and Europe.  He is the recipient of numerous international awards and fellowships including the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship and the National Endowment for the Arts Inter-Arts Fellowship.  Since winning the prestigious Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst Fellowship in 1992, Monahan has become a vital part of Berlin’s vibrant artistic community.  He divides his time between Meaford, Ontario and Berlin, Germany.

Guelph artist and percussionist Jesse Stewart originated the idea for the exhibition, facilitated its production, and wrote the catalogue essay.  The exhibition and catalogue were supported by the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.  The Opening Reception took place on Sunday, September 11 at 7:00 p.m. with a performance by Monahan and Stewart.

Images:
Top:  Music From Nowhere (detail)
Bottom Left:  When It Rains (detail)
photo Jamie Osbourne
Bottom Right: When It Rains (detail)
photo Peter Janigan