Stephanie Jeanjean, PhD has known China Blue for over 20 years. Dr. Jeanjean reflects on her conversations with China Blue over that time and how although her work has changed her focus remains the same. Listen to the interview here.
An Exhibition: Listening for the Unheard
by China Blue
The exhibition “Listening for the Unheard” is a presentation of sculptures, installations and paintings. These are pieces that play with the sounds in Saturn’s rings discovered by the artist. For this reason this exhibition celebrates her interest in using sound as a sculptural form. China Blue sees its capacity to fill and in addition, to energize space by calling upon its Fung Shui application. In this showcase she defines the internal architectural space as having its own shape delineated by sonics. In addition, this is a terrain, based on sampling our sonic environment for what we don’t hear. This includes these acoustics which she and her team discovered for NASA. Lastly, this is a focus she has honed for over 20 years.
In this presentation are acrylic paintings, sound sculptures, a sonic installation and in addition the sound walk “Saturn Walk” which encourages public participation.
Unheard
The unheard is a category of sound not accessible to human ears. It is a concept that can be applied to words or language that we are deaf to resulting from the internalization of racism or sexism. Moreover by exploring this arena China Blue illuminates the importance of learning to listen into what we are not mindful of to strengthen our divided communities.
Events
“Gravity Cloud” is a collaboration with Canadian dancer & choreographer, Andrea Nann and Lance Massey with China Blue’s sonic labyrinth work “Saturn Walk.”
The artist’s talk is presented by Art Historian, Stephanie Jeanjean, PhD. Dr. Jeanjean’s whose indepth knowledge of the artist’s work has spanned over two decades. She interviews China Blue about her interest in Saturn’s sounds and finally, how she came to make these diverse works.
Dates
Exhibition Dates: May 13-June 18, 2023
Location: Jane St Art Center 11 Jane Street, Saugerties, NY
Events:
May 21, 2:00-4:00 “Gravity Cloud” a live music and dance collaboration
June 3, 3:00-5:00 Art Historian Stephanie Jeanjean, PhD interviews the artist about her work.
Sound is a Sojourn: “Saturn’s Siren”
at Sojourner Gallery
446 West 34th Street NYC
Dates: February 6 – March 16, 2023
Opening: February 9, 6-9pm
One element of “Saturn’s Siren” will be on display for this exhibition.
Sound is a sojourn that bridges the past and the present while paving the path to a future. It makes audible the progression of time as we experience it. And, by simply listening we discover the evolving new truths that time presents to us. “Saturn’s Song” is an installation that will enable us to listen into the sounds in Saturn’s rings that China Blue discovered for NASA. Like the Perseverance rover that had the first embedded microphone for us to listen into the winds on Mars “Saturn’s Siren” will enable people to experience the sonic events occurring in her rings ranging from the ice particles that are constantly impacting each other to her moons’ interactions.
Podcast: Listening on Purpose
Listen to Timothy Myer’s interview of China Blue in his podcast Listening on Purpose with Timothy Myers. Mr. Myers is the Principal Conductor & Artistic Advisor at Austin Opera.
Saturn Walk a Soundwalk
This hexagonal soundwalk replicates the cloud pattern over Saturn’s North Pole in a labyrinth and includes a composition inspired by the sonics of Saturn’s rings that the artist discovered for NASA and composed with Lance Massey, creator of the T-Mobile ringtone.
Premiered May 31, 2022, in Pauline Oliveros‘ 90th Birthday, at the Deep Listening Plaza, Kingston, NY. Also presented at MAD Kingston 2022.
Pauline Oliveros is known for her enduring contributions to music and the practice of deep listening.
A Sound Art Work “The Calls” Sounds the 9/11 Fall.
“The Calls” is in the 9/11 Memorial Museum collection.
“Dust Messages” by Seth Horowitz, shot after the fall of the World Trade Center
This sound art piece is an ode to the 9/11 event and the World Trade Center.
Created in collaboration with Dr. Seth Horowitz.
“China Blue…turns the notion of technological advancement into a paradox. “The Calls,” is a sound art piece that centers around the World Trade Center attacks that took place on September 11, 2001. Voices of the control tower dispatchers with the pilots are mixed with dial tones that sound pleasant but eerie. The dial tones were derived from statistics about the World Trade Center. They were based on how tall it was how many people died etc. Voices from the airplanes and control tower can be heard faintly in the background. (These acoustic elements) preserve the fatal last minutes in a shroud of mystery.”
by Jill Conner, Digiscape: Unexplored Terrain, Exhibition Catalog,
Exhibited in Digiscape: Unexplored Terrain at Pace University, NY, 2007
“Cassini’s Dreams” in the 2019 Venice Biennale
The exhibition “Cassini’s Dreams” was held at the Venice Biennale. It was an interactive installation that included painting and a virtual reality app. The installation featured an inflatable of Saturn being “read” in real time by a Cassini laser-to-audio system. This produced a rich audio experience, built from raw data and artistic interpretation of the two decades of Cassini’s tour. There she was our virtual eyes and ears on Saturn. As the probe swept past the gas giant it traveled above and below her rings. It swooped down on the moons and flew through the icy plumes to hover above methane oceans. It also zoomed past shepherd moons that guide ring particles in their orbits. Finally, as it it spied on the propeller moons it enables us to see their internal waves.
The Venice Biennale Painting
The paintings are also inspired by the rings of Saturn as they were seen by the Cassini. For this body of work China Blue utilizes the infrared color spectrum. We can not see in this color range but with China Blue’s usage of the palette she makes visible the invisible. She also cites this scientific application which helps researchers see photographic images in high detail.
The Discovery of the Sounds
The discovery of the sounds of Saturn’s rings was created for NASA by China Blue and Dr. Seth Horowitz. This audio became the bases of the sound art album, Cassini’s Dreams created with Lance Massey the creator of the T-Mobile ring tone. Click here to listen to the work.
The Venice Biennale Virtual Reality
The final element, the Virtual Reality app is a wayfinder that can be used in Venice to find the exhibition. It can also be enable those who are not able to attend to see it. Like Cassini’s search for the Saturn, the app enables everyone to personally explore Saturn and her rings with their phone.
This work is supported in part by the NASA/RI Space Consortium and Canada Council of the Arts. It is also supported by The Engine Institute a non-profit organization. The institute is dedicated to promoting artists working at the intersection of art, science and technology.
Accolades
Lilly Wei, Art Critic says: “Cassini’s Dreams…a remarkable visual arts and sound project that is partly scientific and partly poetic”
Stephanie Jeanjean, Art Historian states: “as China Blue demonstrates…nothing is still nor silent. The void is filled with the sounds of in-commensurable invisible forces that can be heard by those who listen to them.”
Mat Kaplan of The Planetary Society says: The songs are both “beautiful and evocative.”
“Cassini’s Dreams” featured on Planetary Radio
The album “Cassini’s Dreams” was created from the viewpoint of the NASA‘s spacecraft Cassini. It’s mission was to research Saturn. A track from it was featured in Planetary Radio, Chasing New Horizons! Planetary Radio is a weekly 30-minute radio show that is devoted to space exploration and astronomy. It is hosted and produced by Mat Kaplan and The Planetary Society. In addition, the Planetary Society is the largest and most effective nonprofit organization that promotes the exploration of space.
The Making of “Cassini’s Dreams”
The NASA spaceship Cassini was dedicated to researching Saturn during her flight. We decided to explore her data. It was there that we discovered the sounds that might have been heard from inside the spacecraft. That material became the inspiration for “Cassini’s Dreams.” This album enables us to experience what the spacecraft heard while traveling through Saturn’s rings.
“Theta for Pauline,” NY Armory
“Theta for Pauline” is a sculpture and musical score made for Pauline Oliveros. When Seth Horowitz and I met Pauline and her partner Ione we quickly grew to respect both of them for the depth of their work. Learning about Pauline’s interest and development of “Deep Listening” was the topic that made us quick friends.
About Pauline Oliveros
Pauline Oliveros (1932-2016) is known for her lifetime spent as an electronic musician. As early as the 1950’s she created improvisati”ons with Terry Riley and Loren Rush. She also worked with Ramon Sender and Morton Subotnick founders of the San Francisco Tape Music Center. As Pauline’s interest developed in listening attentively she developed the concept of “Deep Listening”. Later this became the Center for Deep Listening at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY. Deep Listening is an idea a philosophy as well as a creative practice. Her concept embraced everyone without reservation. As a result, she easily formed a loyal community of interested listeners. This is a group that extends around the world. It includes not only well known composers but also students, friends, dancers and artists. It is this community of listeners that are dedicated to her voice and continue her deep listening practice.
The Inspiration for “Theta for Pauline”
We were informed that there would be a big celebration for Pauline’s 85th birthday in May 2017. For this event we were asked to contribute a composition of 85 seconds long to present to her. Yet in November of 2016 we learned that the works collected would become a memorial event instead. The event became a concert, an exhibition at the New York Armory and a conference which ran from June 1-3rd at McGill University. In addition a website titled “Still Listening: New Works in Honour of Pauline Oliveros” was created to present the scores and the donated works. Credit for this overwhelming task goes to the organizers Eric Lewis and Ellen Waterman as well as the curators Katherine Horgan, Dancy Mason, and Landon Morrison who not only organized and curated the event but also commissioned Director Amy Harvey to direct the concert.
Our Contribution
Our contribution Theta for Pauline is a work that is based on the theta brain wave. This wave is one of the five waves produced by the brain. It appears during meditative, hypnotic or the sleeping state. When we look at brain waves we are seeing the brain’s activity and one of nature’s most complex patterns. Theta for Pauline is an ode to an enormously compassionate woman who touched many lives and through her meditation on sound brought us to a new understanding of it.
Audio: Theta for Pauline
Our contribution Theta for Pauline is a work that is based on the theta brain wave. This wave is one of the five waves produced by the brain. It appears during meditative, hypnotic or the sleeping state. When we look at brain waves we are seeing the brain’s activity and one of nature’s most complex patterns. Theta for Pauline is an ode to an enormously compassionate woman who touched many lives and through her meditation on sound brought us to a new understanding of it.
Exhibitions/Performances
Our Theta For Pauline score is a 3D printed ring based on the theta brain waves. The circular layout indicates the continuous nature of Deep Listening and its impact that has both span generations and continues to grow. We mourn her death but will continue her vision.
“Still Listening: New Works in Honor of Pauline Oliveros (1932-2016)”
New York Armory, New York, NY
Marvin Duchow Music Library, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Also included in the Suoni Per il Popolo festival, 4871 St-Laurent, Montréal, Québec
The “Still Listening” Site
http://stilllisteningoliveros.com
Composers: http://stilllisteningoliveros.com/china-blue/
Scores: http://stilllisteningoliveros.com/theta-for-pauline/
NASA Grant for Sound Research and Art
NASA
A NASA grant for sound research from the NASA/RI Space Grant Consortium was awarded to China Blue and Dr. Seth Horowitz. The consortium is a NASA funded, Rhode Island state group for space based research. Therefore, the award was funded based to their their interest in exploring the sounds in space. As a result of this funding China Blue with Dr. Seth Horowitz researched and discovered the sounds hidden in Saturn’s rings.
The NASA Grant and Art
The artist and scientist developed an acoustic cosmic library based on events occurring in the rings of Saturn. It is this sound research material that became the inspiration for creating the album “Cassini’s Dreams.” Above all, this group of eleven musical tracks were composed with the help of Lance Massey the creator of the T-Mobile ring tone.