Anna Lucia Nissen
‚Parked Like Serious Oysters‘

Frankfurt
On the occasion of the opening of ‚Parked Like Serious Oysters‘ at the MMK Frankfurt, Wertical interviewed three promising Städel graduates: Graziano Capitta, Inga Danysz and Anna Lucia Nissen.

Anna Lucia Nissen is a versatile artist. She expresses herself through music, video and sculpture, which is clearly visible in the work she created for Parked Like Serious Oysters.

Video is still quite a new medium. You are exploring it. How did you first come in contact with it?
Video seems to be a logical starting point for me. I think in pictures. I often film with a small camera when I´m outside. When I did my exchange year in Glasgow I did this on a daily base. Through this process I sometimes find objects that eventually serve as a base for my sound sculptures and appear in the video. I find it interesting to oscillate between a loose narrative and a more abstract moving image. I consider videos as a three-dimensional environment. I want the images to extend into the room and become a physical experience. That’s why I show them projected and not on a screen.

The music and atmosphere can easily be caught in your work, what about the lyrics, are they inspiration as well?
Music is as important for me as the image. I use the lyrics I write to create a space you can move in. As such, it’s more a sculptural and physical thing for me than a narrative. There is a huge difference between lyrics written on paper and those sung out. By singing the lyrics you add a texture and the rhythm becomes as important as the actual words and develops their content into something else. I choose words for their sculptural characteristics. I have the constant strive to give an equal voice to both, music and visual art. This is sometimes leading to a conflict which works as a motor at the same time and pushes me to find a solution.

You are also working with other media. Which ones did you choose to work on for “PLSO”? Why?
My work is within the intersection of moving image, music and performance. I use everyday objects and symbols that I transform into props to appear in the video as well as in the installation. I am interested in creating a non-linear thread. I initially wanted to show a sculpture I made for my Master Degree at the Glasgow School of Art in June for the PLSO show. But it was too big to take with me so I decided to do something else with it. I began with an image of it as a starting point. I knew I wanted to include music in a more responding way than I did before. For this show I first shot the footage and just started working on the music with my band ‚Womanmann‘ during the editing process. In my work for this show the video takes a very prominent part so I decided to work mainly with sound instead with the structure of a song or lyric. While working on the piece I decided against a live performance. The sculpture should perform by itself. I created two audio layers. One, the main soundtrack for the film can be listened by wireless headphones. The other sound is audible in the space through a sound sculpture. So the viewer has one film with two different sound sources. And you can either hear one or the other. I find that quite interesting.

With dozen of artists, PLSO is an adventurous group show. Can you describe the exhibition spirit?
While setting up I got the impression that this is a really strong graduation year. I am surprised how well the works correspond together in the space. The curator accompanied each of the graduates for the last 3 to 4 months and could follow each process of the work until now. She made mindful decisions of where each work would have its best room. Each work is so different from each other that it is hard to describe a common spirit. The common ground is that each work is very different and that makes it a good show.

What are you plans near the future?
It is planned to make an event-based work over 3 days in Glasgow in the beginning of the next year. For this the performative aspect will be much more in the foreground and will include a collaboration with other artists and musicians.

Installation view „Chin Of The Mushroom“ Digital Video-Audio Installation. 2015

Installation view „Chin Of The Mushroom“ Digital Video-Audio Installation. 2015

MMK Frankfurt

Anna Lucia Nissen

October 14 – November 15, 2015

Zollamt
Domstraße 3
60311 Frankfurt am Main
Germany

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