Output details

‘Sodium Mercury Halogen Tungsten Neon,’ Digital Video with Sound, duration 7 minutes, with soundtrack by Giuseppe Iacono

This video work resulted from carrying out an exercise testing Goethe’s scientific method of ‘delicate empiricism’ (Bortoft, 1996, Naydler 1996, Brook 1998), in a systematic observation of the River Clyde during the winter. The aim was to work through the four stages outlined by Goethe in the observation of a familiar and largely ignored phenomenon (the river as it passes under busy city bridges) to see if his process of deliberately setting aside assumptions and theories would allow fresh insights to arise. Working through the stages Goethe outlined resulted in an understanding of how the river presents two distinct phenomena – its shimmering, responsive surface, and its implacable and impenetrable substance, the body of cold water subject to current and tide. This perception of the resolute ‘otherness’ and strangeness of the cold, black river as it quietly and powerfully bisects the city centre of Glasgow resulted in the development of a video work. The video is comprised of a slow-paced edit of the motion of artificial light from shops and riverside flats reflected from the black water’s surface as it changed according to weather and tidal patterns. During the development of the work, a series of video clips were sent to the Italian violinist and composer Guiseppe Iacono, who developed a seven minute score in response. His score shaped the final edit. The video was selected for inclusion in the screening “Echo Presents…” at the Collective Gallery, Edinburgh in February 2009. It was screened again at the Castello Aragonese, Ischia in 2009 with a live performance of the soundtrack.