Since 1998 Beeoff, an artists group, has been working with, what they term as, a new art-scene, a real-time-creation-studio involving the development of new technologies and software. They also have built a physical space/splintermind-studio, infrastructure, live-scene, museum network, residency-program and nonTVTVstation. The group now works with installation and sculptures involving “high-tech, way beyond all the buzz about new media” says Bjorn Norberg, curator for nonTVTVstation.

The latest work brought to us online in real-time from nonTVTVstation is ‘Sperm phase detector’ by the artist Nils Edvardsson. Every other day he frequents the station’s studio to deposit his fresh seed for the online audience to listen to. We do not only hear, we can also actually view the machine as it processes, translates the potentially ‘life-giving’ liquid into audio. It feels like a performance but without the artist literally being there, except in spirit and essence that is.

When observing the static machine and listening to the fuzzy noise of the piece, one’s first impression is that there is not much happening, yet it is live and it is occuring before your very ears and eyes. A white noise dominates, the sound of the semen planted by the artist. One’s associative and relative mind kicks into gear and all the sound references start sliding into place; such as distant waterfalls, television fuzz and whatever else you feel fits into that ‘sonic-art’ category. Visually, it is very still and one finds it hard to believe that it is real-time and that the sound is actually semen, but I have been informed by the curator that it is absolutely live and not a hoax.

So, we are listening to the sound of sperm being transferred as data. A trans materialization of bodily fluid into data for the Internet; abstracted, processed into the networked void. Such inactive creative humour from Nils Edvardsson’s piece is reminiscent of Andy Warhol’s ‘Empire’.

John: Why is nothing happening? I don’t understand.
Henry: What would you like to happen?
John: I don’t know.
Henry: I have a feeling that all we’re filming is the red light.
Andy: Oh, Henry!!!
Henry: Andy?! Now Is THE TIME TO PAN.
John: Definitely not!
Henry: The film is a whole new bag when the lights go off.
John: Look at all that action going on. Those flashes. Tourists taking photos.
Andy: Henry, what is the meaning of action?
Henry: Action is the absence of inaction.
Andy: Let’s say things intelligent.
Gerard: Listen! We don’t want to deceive the public, dear.
John: We’re hitting a new milestone.
Andy: Henry, say Nietzsche.

http://www.splintermind.com/start.html – view work.

Conversation Notated Verbatim by Gerard Malanga During the Filming of Empire. With John Palmer/Henry Romney/Andy Warhol
Gerard Malanga/Marie Desert/Jonas Mekas.
http://www.warholstars.org/warhol/warhol1/warhol1f/links/conv.html

October 2003