Wirepiece (2022) consists of a drum string, held tight between two points (generally between ceiling and floor) which is touched—played, really—by a strip of film stock looped through a 16mm projector resting at a 45-degree angle on its plinth. The strip of celluloid takes on a double role: on the one hand, as is typical of its function, light is projected through it and creates a diffuse illumination. On the other hand, in an unusual function, the film's movement against the drum string creates a silvery sound. As an electronic pickup amplifies the vibrations of the string, the characteristic fluttering sound of celluloid passing through a projector is also intensified.
Wirepiece, 2022
Modified 16 mm projector, snare drum string, plinth
Dimensions variable
Installation view: The Tanks at Tate Modern, London, 2023
Photo © Tate (Reece Straw)
© Rosa Barba
Wirepiece, 2022 has been on display at the following locations:
Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, 2024
The Tanks at Tate Modern, London, 2023
Centre Pompidou, 2023
cccod, Tours, 2022
Esther Schipper, Berlin, 2022