Shield I-III is a series of collaborative works between visual artist Aesa Björk and Tinna under the working title Disruptances, which is derived from the combination of the words disrupting + disturbance.
By mapping brain activity with EEG recordings, Aesa and Tinna set out to interpret the border between an intangible emotional state and the physical manifestation of brain activity. The EEG recordings were transformed into sound waves. The fragile glass shields serve both as canvases depicting the physical movements that took place, as well as soundboards for brain activity triggered by emotional responses and movement. The sound manifests itself as vibrations created by the conductive speakers attached to the glass. By forming a chamber of human proportions the glass shields can be seen as a membrane separating the self from the outside while reflecting an inner reality which often remains invisible.
[Aesa Björk, transl: Tinna]
Shield I was exhibited at the biennial European Glass Context in Bornholm, Denmark 2016. Shield II was a solo show at S12 Galleri og Verksted in Bergen, Norway 2018 and was awarded the most prestigious prize, the ‘Grand Prize’ at the triennial Toyama International Glass Exhibition in Japan, where it is exhibited at the Toyama Glass Art Museum as part of the museum´s collection. Their most recent collaboration, Shield III, was showcased in Venice during the 58th Biennale 2019, as part of an exhibition organised by Karuizawa New Art Museum – Venice Branch, at San Marco Square and dwells now in Hong Kong. The works were made at S12 Galleri og Verksted.
More on Shield I-III
A video at GAS, the Glass Art Society’s Conference 2020, where Aesa and Tinna speak about the making of Shield I-III
Glass, electronics, brain waves, video projections, transducer speakers (2016-2019)
Collaborators: S12 Galleri og Verksted, Josh Kopel, Nanna Einarsdóttir