Hullabaloo, 2009
multimedia sound installation
32 channels, 266 loud speakers, 1 subwoofer, 1 computer, acrylic paint on wood 255x235x60 cm
There are 266 countries that lay claim to a national anthem. In Hullabaloo those national anthems are played in such a way that, after half of one has been heard, all are collectively audible for a brief interval. The national anthems are played according to a clearly planned composition. Nevertheless, a jarringly loud carpet of sound is produced, with the individual melodies drowned out in cacophony. Chaos instead of music or melodiousness. The work recalls the Tower of Babel and the punishment of man’s hubris with linguistic confusion. The viewer is confronted with a wall of 266 loudspeakers like a bellowing being. […]
Thomas Köllhofer, HECTOR PROMOTIONAL PRIZE 2009, Exhibition Catalogue (Cologne: Wienand Verlag, 2009).
Installation view; Kunsthalle Mannheim
photos: Cem Yücetaş
