The Noise of the City

 

ALEXANDER ANTIPIN (born 1956) is a contemporary St. Petersburg artist. He works in field of computer graphics, media art and video art. Alexander was born near Saratov, lived in Siberia. He graduated from the Leningrad State University (Journalism Department) in 1986. Antipin began his career as a photographer. From 1994 to 2003 he worked as an art director in Moscow and St. Petersburg magazines (“The World of Internet”, “Aktivist”, “OM”). In early 2000 he became interested in video and digital graphics. From 2006 to 2011 he worked as senior lecturer in Department of Media Design and Information Technology at St. Petersburg State University. Currently he teaches Media Art in St. Petersburg State University of Film and Television.

 

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

 

2007 “Insomnia Communication”, DO-gallery, St. Petersburg, Russia

2008 “4x4x4x4”, “KvadraT” gallery, St. Petersburg, Russia

2012 “Hidden City” (nominated in the best Media Object of Sergey Kuryokhin Modern Art Award), Tkachi Creative Space, St. Petersburg, Russia

2012 II Krasnoyarsk International Festival of Media Art (the first prize for “Media Art” nomination), Krasnoyarsk, Russia

2013 “Changing Landscapes”, collateral event of 55th Venice biennale, Università Ca' Foscari, Venice, Italia

2014 “The Other Capital. Contemporary Art of St. Petersburg Today”, The Museum of Moscow, Moscow, Russia

2015 “Spamm of Virtualism”, New York, USA

2015 "The Noise of the City", lampa studio, St. Petersburg, Russia

 

 

 

THE NOISE OF THE CITY

 

Impressed by visit of the Central Astronomical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences at Pulkovo and by classical soviet fantastic movies (“The Andromeda Nebula”, “Planet of the Storms”) St. Petersburg artist Alexander Antipin has decided to create a project “The Noise of the City”. The starting idea was that the Pulkovo is not only scientific and technical complex for observing stars, but also a great panoramic point from which the whole city can be seen at glance. The artist shows this place as kind of zero zone, which combines two noises. The first one is the noise of outer space, of the universe, of stars and thermal radiation. The second one is the noise of the city including the planes, cars, radio, radars, television, internet, mobile phones and people.

 

Displayed in the gallery the video and the sound combine these two forms of noise. Two streams of video broadcasted simultaneously allow the spectator to feel himself on the benchmark, where the eternal and inaccessible merge with customary and momentary. The first video stream shows the observatory with radio telescopes, the second one — the city with its buildings, highways and airports. In the exhibition video art is complemented by works of computer graphics.

 

 

This project is a part of The Wrong New Digital Art Biennale. You can find all the information about the biennale and a photo report from the exhibition opening in THE WRONG section.