Over the Rainbow
Over the Rainbow is a site-work that was created as part of 48hours/48rooms, an exhibition that took place in a rooming house in Montreal. The occupants who lived in these modest rooms had been evicted in preparation for the renovation of the upper floors of the building. For a two-day period the rooms were inhabited and modified by a group of forty-eight artists.
For this installation, multiple one-inch holes were made in the walls of the room. Each opening was emphasized by an application of hot wax and black smoke. Miniature electronic musical movements were embedded in each hole. A high-pitched electronic version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow played when the viewer pressed the movement’s silver button. As viewers touched multiple buttons the result was a cacophony of sound. Somewhere Over the Rainbow transforms from a song of longing and desire to one of chaotic noise.
The exhibition was curated by Ingrid Bachmann. The sculptural work in the space is by Red Armstrong.
Media: smoke, wax, miniature electronic musical movements
Dimensions: Approximately 27.87 m2 (300’2)
Photography: Paul Litherland