“I gradually became interested in sculpture in order to achieve a space that was real without being a volume. I wanted my sculpture to talk about the space we’re in, to tell us about what’s around us, including outer space. […] I asked myself the question: is the notion of “surrounding space” a cosa mentale?”
Lars Fredrikson
The post-war years saw the emergence of a cultural and technological context that transformed musical composition and encouraged incursions into new realms of listening. These went further than traditional composition and explored, among other things, new ways of interacting with the audience, techniques of synthesis and reproduction that make it possible to use sound as a starting point for new experiences, and a new metaphysics of silence.
In the visual arts, the practice of sculpture extended into notions of environment and process and envisioned new ways of defining space.
It was in this historic landscape that Lars Fredrikson’s artistic practices developed. His approach, which he wanted to dissociate from the cultural and aesthetic “anecdotes” of musical composition, is symptomatic of a desire for inner corporeal and spatial awareness .
Programme
14:00 – 14:15: Léa Dreyer, PhD student in the History of Contemporary Art, Université Paris 1
Introduction
14:15 – 14:45: Jonas (J) Magnusson, writer, publisher, critic and translator
An explosive art. Experiments with enamel in Stockholm and the Swedish artists’ commune at Lacoste (a few thoughts on Lars Fredrikson’s early career)
14:45 – 15:15: Léa Dreyer
Lars Fredrikson’s early work with sound and the dream of physiological painting
15:15 – 15:45 : Matthieu Saladin, Assistant Professor of visual arts, Université Paris 8
“The children hadn’t noticed yet, but their ears were stirring”. Remarks on a few pieces by Maryanne Amacher
15:45 – 16:00: Pause
16:00 – 16:30: Anne Zeitz, Assistant Professor of visual arts, Université Rennes 2
Voice, sounds and “Musique en conteneur”. The role of sound practices in the latest editions of the Paris Biennale
16:30-17:00: Elena Sorokina, curator and art historian
Sound spaces at documenta 14
17:00 – 17:15: Léa Dreyer
Conclusion
17:15-18:00: Odile Decq, architect and urban planner, in conversation with Isabelle Sordage, artist, and Elena Sorokina
Round table: “The plastic dimension of sound”
At 6pm, as a transition to the event Lars Fredrikson and the poets, which starts at 7.30pm, Elena Sorokina offers a guided tour of the exhibition Suivre les ondes: Lars Fredrikson in resonance with Anastasia Ax and Christine Ödlund.
Scientific coordination: Léa Dreyer
Useful information
- Discussions in French.
- Admission free, no need to book ahead.
- For those who would like to attend the discussions remotely, follow this link.