Forest Untitled
2010
tape, tape recorder
The installation that Nico VASCELLARI conceived for his exhibition on Vassivière's island, linking together the idea of memory, archive and the metamorphosis of sedimented data, consists of a 60 minutes long tape loop obtained by assembling together pieces of all the albums of his collection with a forest on their cover. The over 100 meters long tape is extended into the forest of Vassivière and played by a tape recorder. Attached to the tape recorder is a device made by the artist that switches on and off alternatively the Record and Play functions, this way the sound of the tape loop will continuously change combining at first the memories of the artist with the sound of forest till only the sound of the wood will remain. Over time, the original sound traces will be lost, but not before they have been overlaid with other sounds, in successive strata, as though the tape were the living memory of some geological upheaval. The pre-recorded sound loop will be constantly changing, and with time the sound traces of the audio cassettes will give way to a spontaneously created new soundtrack, dictated by chance.
HYMN
2008
video projection, broken mirrors, wood, 12 speakers, 36 audio tracks
Hymn is an elaborate large scale video installation bringing together the recordings of performances that the artist conducted in various natural environments (a cave near Rovereto, the Carpathian Forest, the Black Forest, Finland, Norway and Tasmania) with the participation of musicians, representing diverse musical genres, including noise, black metal, doom, folk, ambient and electronic. Overlapping layers of music, influenced by the atmosphere of nature (forests and mountains in particular), orchestrated in seemingly random sequences, present new sense of landscape. VASCELLARI's work provides a journey, where the grotesque and sublime conspire towards the production of an experience that is purifying, aesthetic and sensory
I hear a Shadow
2011
bronze, iron, acids, three slide-projections (160 slides), sound system
430 x 210 centimeters
The monolith is illuminated by three projectors, which project alternately 160 slides reproducing the collages. In a kaleidoscopic effect, light and colors shroud the sculpture in as many sunsets, and draw the mountains' shadow on the wall.
Nest
2010
decomposed nest, wood, glass, glue
268 x 85 centimeters
In his work Nico VASCELLARI tackles a dimension he feels a particular affinity with – the arcane world of the mountains, a symbol of transcendence and the dividing line between visible and invisible. Forest-clad mountains and vegetation in general often form the backdrop for his performances, as well as providing "raw material" for his works: like his nidi (nests), meticulously dissected into countless fragments.
Revenge
2007
burned wood, 60 borrowed speakers from underground European bandsinstallation and three performances with John Wiese on the opening days, and performance of Stephen O'Malley on November 21, 2007
Nico VASCELLARI 's work focuses on the interaction between the contemporary visual and musical cultural scenes, highlighting the more instinctive, gut-level side of art. Produced for the Venice Biennale in 2007, Revenge is an art project consisting of a huge installation, namely a wall of burnt wood seven meters high, packed with amplifiers that echo the sounds in the room using the feedback process, and a performance in the course of which VASCELLARI stages a deafening and madcap concert, accompanied by other performers and assisted on the mixer by the musician John Wiese. The work is a tribute to the noise punk underground scene – of which the artist is a member in his role as front-man with the With Love group – and literally represents the revenge of an artistic scene that is generally excluded by all the institutional showcases. The video, projected onto a screen made of burnt wood, testifies to the anger and invasive power of that revenge
Untitled
2010
old windwos, wall-paper
Three old windows have been removed from Nico VASCELLARI's attic and lean towards a wall-paper. The dust accumulated on the windows over the years, which was preventing the artist from clearly seeing the outside landscape, form a sort of drawing on glass while the folds of the wall-paper evoke a mountainous landscape.
