Watershed consists of an ensemble of of six sound sculptures distributed over the courtyard. The sculptures are made out of altered and re-assembled Christmas decoration animals, made of acrylic glas covered with holographic foil and LED lighting. The amorphous shapes are vague assemblages of possible bodies supported by walking aids. They are fitted with sound conducting transducers to become resonant bodies. In a 6 channel ensemble they play a 30 minute spatial composition comprising field recordings, voices, and elements of popular music.
From the team of Taipei Biennial I asked their favorite break-up songs. Choosing Karen Mok’’s “Suddenly”, a go-to Hit for Karaoke, I wrote new lyrics for the song, a duet between a care taker and cared for. The English lyrics were translated into various languages in a collective effort, paying attention to traces of migration and generational shifts in language, where certain words or whole sentences disappear or merge behind others. As the work was shown in Taiwan, languages span from Mandarin, English and Cantonese to local dialects like Minnan. The composition captures inter-generational lingual shifts and gaps to trace changing social and geopolitical relations as well as disappearances of vocabulary. The installation also corresponded with surrounding sonic events, such as the frequent passing of jet planes overhead.
Watershed is dedicated to the caretaker, a figure who compensates for the impairment of another person. The social contract comes under duress when abilities to communicate and recognize are fading. The urgency and immediacy of this relation opens a realm where distinctions and integrity of identity, of selves and others dissolve.