A living musical exhibit at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts will set 70 zebra finches loose in an aviary, and the only perches are the strings of 14 electric guitars and bass guitars.
When the birds land, they create music that’s played through amplifiers stationed around the aviary.
French artist Céleste Boursier-Mougenot calls it living music, inspired by a thought from his childhood.
“Looking through the window, my feeling was that I want to make music from these birds on the wire, and 30 years later I did this,” he said.
Visitors will be escorted in to the exhibition room 25 at a time and asked to walk calmly through the installation. They are also part of the musical creation, as the birds react to their presence.
Curator Marie-Eve Beaupré said this is a highly unusual undertaking for a museum.
Every morning, a clean-up crew tidies the room, and the birds get regular visits from a veterinarian to make sure they stay healthy.
This is the 19th time Boursier-Mougenot has created this installation. It’s travelled to New York, Paris, Milan, and it’s making its Canadian premiere in Montreal.
The finches hail from a breeder in Thetford Mines. They’ll go back home once the exhibition closes on March 27.
A note for the musically savvy: The instruments in the installation are ten white Gibson Les Paul guitars and four black Gibson Thunderbird basses.
text via the CBC http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/birds-guitars-exhibit-montreal-fine-arts-1.3331646
Interview from the Peabody Essex Museum and view of installation:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yn93J2axD_k
Dymaxion Sleep (curled up)
See the video on VIMEO
2. Fill the plastic tub a ¼ of the way with water. Assemble the two parts of the deckle together by having the frame with the screen facing upwards and the other frame with the foam strip facing down sitting on top of frame with the screen. The screen and foam strip should be sandwiched together between the two frames. Submerge the deckle into the tub with water. Once submerged, the water level should sit slightly above the frame with the screen. If the water is not above the screen pour some water in the tub until it is above. Have a partner hold down the deckle in the tub so it does not float when putting in the pulp.
3. Take a spoon and spoon some of the pulp into the center opening of the deckle on top of the screen. Spread it around evenly on the deckle. Add as much pulp as you desire, the more pulp you add the longer it will take for the paper to dry and the thicker it will be.
4. When you are done with the pulp, slowly lift the deckle up, still sandwiched together, from the water and let it drain. You can choose to take the deckle to the sink to remove the excess water or turn the deckle slightly to its side and rest the deckle on the edge of your plastic tub. Now remove the top frame of your deckle and your paper pulp should be resting on the screen material of the other half your deckle. At this point, you can choose to add flat leaves or petals on the surface of the paper pulp if you want some decoration. 
You must be logged in to post a comment.