Beyond Sound  - Chris Sykes Solo Exhibition 

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Chris Sykes is an emerging regional fine art photographer. His work explores the relationship between photography, music, sound and technology. This is Sykes first solo exhibition and showcases two bodies of Sykes work 'Romanticism' and 'Beyond Words'.  

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Beyond Words 

Responding to the power and impact of famous, emotive speeches, Sykes attempts to disrupt linear time and re-imagine these influential speeches as visual experiences. The process starts with the appropriation of recordings of Winston Churchill, Hillary Clinton, Adolf Hitler, John F Kennedy and Martin Luther King. Using a precious metal called Gallium, which transforms from a solid to a liquid state at approximately human body temperature, Sykes takes multiple images of this liquid metal as it reacts with the sound waves of various speeches generated by a conventional loudspeaker. The resulting photographs are then sequenced, mapped and processed using high resolution 3D modelling software – a technique known as ‘photogrammetry’ – in order to produce images that condense and encapsulate entire orations into a singular visual landscape. With the increasing use of data visualisation and digital imaging, this pseudoscientific investigation attempts to challenge the boundaries of what photography can be.

 

Romanticism 

Looking at the relationship between photography, music and technology, Sykes creates a colourful fusion, which tries to defy linear time. The process begins with the playing of classical music from the Romantic Era (1790-1910) on a regular loudspeaker. Whilst water beads placed on the speaker react to the vibrations of the music, Sykes takes multiple images. The photographs are then processed in a texture mapping software, where Sykes then interrupts this process to add colour to the texture. Each visual landscape colour represents the key of the classical music been played. The space around these visual islands is representative of the beauty of silence within classical music, which is said to be just as important as the music for the listener.

 

https://www.chrissykesphotography.com

 

Norfolk Street Arts CIC projects are supported through funding from the Arts Council.This exhibition is supported through the Unlock the City strand of Sunderland Culture's Great Place programme, which supports the development of artists and creative businesses in Sunderland, and is funded by Arts Council England and National Lottery Heritage Fund.