‘Collision is the outcome of a unique collaboration investigating associations common to music and contemporary painting. Working closely together, artist Kevin Laycock and composer Michael Berkeley have explored the potential for translating a musical score into a visual format.’
The initial confrontation of the corridor of
vibrant,
distressed yet strangely
structured painted papers prepare you for transformation to the next realm; a moving frieze of projected digital images creating complete simultaneous
memorisation for the eyes and ears.
To begin ambiguous sequences of lines and numbers brings thoughts of
infinity and illusions. Vivid orange, blue, white and yellow clean-cut lines and numbers cover four large projected screens. The rugged
texture of the edges of the stills is apparent in the digital work as the dissolve technique used creates an amazing
after image -this simple technique creates a monumental effect. One can draw parallels with the more distressed stills and specific phrases of the music.
The inspiration for this work is the representation of the
underlying structure of music. This is evident throughout, particularly when the music develops a very steely sound; this is reflected in the metallic and menacing lines across the screens.
Laycock writes:
“The title [Collision] refers to the differences in approach to composition used by both Berkeley and me, intuition versus system. Each approach might be though of as being a odds with the other in terms of method whilst at the same time exploiting each other’s shared creative processes to establish a new composition from two very distinct disciplines”.
For anyone with a curiosity of the potential of shared language for music and art Laycock’s exhibition provides a fascinating and thought provoking experience.
