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Manufactory
Barbican, London
THE CLINKING and clanking of industrial machinery, the infinite monotony of the factory floor and the rhythmic beauty of working are starkly demonstrated in this innovative new production that uses music, video and performance to explore the physicality of labour.
Live installation Manufactory is the brainchild of German art collective Transforma and is the culmination of years of artist residencies in France and Switzerland, with research for the piece taking them from a seafood-packing plant to the biggest postal sorting office in the south of France.
Most notable is the trio’s collaboration with electronic mastermind Sascha Ring, best known for his work under the moniker Apparat, who is hands-on-deck to provide the pounding industrial sounds.
The dim stage lighting is reminiscent of the dusky gloom of warehouses or floodlights found on docks and cameras film the work undertaken by four performers, choreographed by Johanna Yoon Kyung Hwang, which is live streamed on giant screens at the back of the stage.
The hour-long performance shows the manufacture of wood blocks and metals, insightfully revealing the role of the line worker. In the first sequence, wood blocks go from tray to conveyor belt to slide to tray, with the quickening pace aided by the beats of Apparat. The allusion is clear — with the unending supply of materials and demand, their work has an infinite nature.
In the second performance, silver metal stones are produced and the cameras artfully capture their descent from a conveyor belt. Transforma's camera skills should come as no surprise. Luke Bennett, Baris Hasselbach and Simon Krahl are rooted in the early VJ (video djing) scene in Berlin and, since 2001, the trio have provided live video mixes to accompany DJ sets.
In latter years they've come to explore their concepts outside the club scene. So here, with this innovative piece, we have electronic music for art galleries.
The performance is the first in the Barbican's series showcasing experimental threads in electronic music and it concludes on October 7 when Aisha Devi, the Asian Dope Boys and Pan Daijing explore spirituality and femininity in the post-digital age.
