Prussian Blue
Sound-making apparatus is embedded inside the piece. Eventually this will probably mean creating a box, the face of which has a series of headphone jacks. Visitors can put the headphones on and the sound is looped for continuous play.
About Prussian Blue
In late Summer 2009 I was invitied to participate in an exhibit at the Garnerville Arts and Industrial Center. Shortly afterwards, performance artist and composer Lisa Karrer discussed the idea of collaborating on this. They were specifically looking for work that was thematically connected to the facility. The more we researched the project the more fascinated we became with the historical and scientific connections:- Mills and factories built during he 18th and 19th centuries wer emost often located near dependable soruces of power and transportation. In this case a rapidly moving stream located very near to the Hudson River
- The Garnerville Mill dyed and manufactured Uniforms for the Union Army during the American Civil War. The primary dye used was Prussian Blue
- The history of Prussian Blue is inextricably linked to art, science, medicine, industry and war
- The Entombment of Christ by painter Pieter Van Der Werff (1709) is the oldest known painting that incorporated Prussian Blue
- Pharmaceutical-grade Prussian blue in particular is used for patients who have ingested thallium or radioactive cesium. An adult male can eat at least 10 grams of Prussian blue per day without any serious harm
- Prussian blue is one of the first synthetic pigments, synthesized for the first time in Berlin around the year 1706. It was named "Preusisch blau" and "Berlinisch Blau" in 1709 by its first trader
- Prussian Blue was a dye used to color uniforms of the Union Army in the American Civil War
Soundscape by Lisa Karrer
Click here to listen to the sound scape by Lisa Karrer
Eventually we may create a more portable version of this work to ease installation and control volume.
