Designer Dan Tobin Smith and creative studio The Experience Machine, in partnership with Gemfields, present VOID; a multi-sensory spatial installation at Collins Music Hall, Islington, as part of London Design Festival 2019.
Visitors will become part of an immersive experience, travelling through a series of large-scale projections that showcase the expanded space inside gemstones and map the blurring boundaries between nature and design.
A selection of Mozambican rubies and Zambian emeralds from Gemfields’ mines, which date back millions of years, are brought to life through photography of tiny microcosms magnified to become abstract, galaxy-like structures. Accompanied by other semi-precious gems created in rare geological processes, these unique mineral formations are discovered, suspended and frozen in time.
The installation considers the concept of containment and scale, employing spatial design to explore the natural borders formed within these unique mineral formations. By translating moving image into a contained physical form and scoring the experience with harmonised layers of the human voice – by female electronic drone choir NYX – visitors are invited to enter within the portrait of a gemstone’s natural inclusion.
COLLINS MUSIC HALL 11 ISLINGTON GREEN ANGEL LONDON
N1 2XH
OPENING TIMES 10:30AM – 5:00PM 14TH – 22ND SEPTEMBER
3:00pm closing on Sunday 15th September
8:00pm late opening on Thursday 19th & Friday 20th September
GEMFIELDS MASTERCLASS WITH GEMMOLOGIST JOANNA HARDY AND DESIGNER DAN TOBIN SMITH AT VOID
An intimate group walk around the VOID installation space with renowned gemmologist and jewellery specialist Joanna Hardy and VOID designer Dan Tobin Smith. The masterclass will focus on the history of gemstones, their origins and what attributes make them unique, while Dan Tobin Smith will discuss his passion for inclusions and explain the process of filming and projecting the gems within the installation VOID.
Tuesday 17th September – 11:00am and 7:30pm (45mins)
To book online visit www.londondesignfestival.com
FEMALE ELECTRONIC DRONE CHOIR; NYX PERFORMS LIVE AT VOID
NYX, a collaborative drone choir and otherworldly electric chorus, re-embodies live electronics and extended vocal techniques. An experiential exploration of ambient noise and electronic music, NYX makes ecstatic sonic landscapes, punctuated with acoustic glitches, polyphonic overtones and electric textures. Looking to reshape the role of the traditional female choir, NYX tests the limits of organic and synthetic modulation to explore the entire spectrum of the collective female voice as an instrument.
To book online visit www.londondesignfestival.com
Sunday 15th September – 4:00pm (30mins)
Wednesday 18th September – 7:30pm (30mins)