Art Break: Zimoun’s Wall of Sound

In this new series on the blog, I’ll be taking a break from my daily to-do list to share some pieces of art that have caught my eye. I’ll do my best to pick a variety of artists and creative pieces that spark my interest and I hope yours as well! If you have any suggestions of art or artists you’d like me to cover, let me know in the comment section below, I’m all ears!

For my first edition of Art Break, I’ve selected Swiss-born artist Zimoun who is most well known for his installation art. He makes hundreds of objects out of ordinary materials like cardboard, wire, packing peanuts and plastic, then animates them using mechanical elements to create large sound sculptures. The work becomes audible when the cardboard boxes lightly bump into each or the thin wires repetitively hit the wall they are installed on. Check out the video below to see some of these amazing installations:

The individual objects themselves look very sleek, controlled and precise, yet their animation creates contradictory patterns and sounds, adding an interesting tension to the overall work of art. Last spring, Amber had the opportunity to see Wall of Sound on the UCI campus:

“The sound is the first thing I noticed. It’s soft, rhythmic but varying. It was  mesmerizing to stand in the space and be surrounded by these surprisingly simple looking arrangements that together make up the installation, but even more I enjoyed getting up close. It’s like all of these little cotton balls and wires have individual personalities – some sweeping back and forth, others bouncing up and down, others off doing something completely different, all at varying speeds – that together make the whole beautiful.”

I hope I get the chance to see some of Zimoun’s work in the near future.  Check out his website to learn more and maybe you’ll be able to catch one of his installations in your area!