The Inner Life of Jack: Inside Out/Outside In
Jack Straw New Media Gallery – Seattle, WA
A room-size camera obscura and collaborative soundscape by Ellen Sollod and Johanna Melamed, created in celebration of Jack Straw Production’s 50th anniversary. 2012
Listen to an interview with Ellen and Johanna about the making of the work.
The camera obscura and sound score created an immersive experience, evoking the essence and history of Jack Straw Productions. Jack Straw exists in a physical space; but, to much of its audience, it is in the ephemeral ether of the airwaves– primarily the radio or the internet. To its listeners, the relationship to the building is irrelevant. To artists, writers, musicians, and others who create work here, it is the place that is central.
The installation represents this dichotomy: Jack Straw reaching out into the world and the world coming to Jack Straw, simultaneously. The score is a compilation of found sounds, field recordings made in situ, archival material from KRAB, and contemporary recordings made at Jack Straw. Together, the visual and audio weave a web of experience, ultimately aligning the two worlds. More details on the sound score and elements of production can be seen here.