Artist Statement
May 27-July 23, Centre d’Art Cal Massó de Reus, Beep Collection: Origins. Public event.
The title of the work refers to the device designation of the used plasma monitor. It is a common device that has been used for many years in exhibition and event contexts. However, this monitor has become obsolete due to recent technological developments. With the installation TH 50PH10EK – Wall, this object is transformed from a carrier of art into a work of art.
A 50-inch plasma monitor is installed as a pendulum, which swings out freely on the wall after being triggered. As soon as the monitor comes to a standstill, it is pulled back into the original position with the help of a cable winch and is made to swing again – triggered by pulling a ripcord, a performative act that cannot take place without human intervention and which involves the exhibition supervisor in the installation. Each cycle ends when the monitor has come to a standstill and no sound and video is produced by its movement. The sound is generated by the amplification of the friction which the back of the monitor is subjected to on the wall. The visualization on the screen is a direct translation of the analogue audio signal into an analogue video signal. Voltage and frequency are represented by a loudspeaker in sound on the one hand and as flickering horizontal white lines on the monitor itself on the other. There is no processing of the signal, for example by a computer or an effects device.
In his works, Stefan plays with the meaning of the function of the devices and objects used, breaks with their predetermined purposes and modifies them. This experimental approach and exploration of old and new technologies and their combination can also be found in this work. http://www.stefantiefengraber.com/th_50ph10ek_wall.php
[Source: https://www.beepcollection.art/stefan-tiefengraber]
- Stefan Tiefengraber, Baden bei Wien, Austria, 1981. After working in a film production company for six years, he changed his main place of residence to Linz where he started studying Timebased and Interactive Media at University of Art and Design Linz in 2010. In 2012/13, he took part in an exchange program at the Korean National University of Arts in Seoul for a year. His work ranges from kinetic sound installations to audio-video noise performances. Tiefengraber experiments with the modification of devices, which are originally manufactured for different purposes. Combined with the perception of the audience, this experimental attempt of exploring old and new materials leads him to new and unpredictable results. The artist’s work has been exhibited at Ars Electronica Garden Barcelona, Barcelona 2021, Ars Electronica Festival 2021-2019 Linz, Galerie gerken Berlin, TodaysArt 2014 Den Haag, New Media Gallery Vancouver, 16th Media Art Biennale WRO 2015 Wroclaw, Piksel Festival 2016 Bergen, among others. http://www.stefantiefengraber.com