by Artistic Research PhD Candidates of the University of Applied Arts Vienna.
Supervisor: Ruth Schnell
In what ways can public space be reclaimed through sound art, performance and collective cycling? How can cities be reimagined through collective listening?
A collective body of sound emerges as a referential structure or a multiplicity of relationships in the city, reclaiming space by using the bicycle as a medium and carrier that is, above all, audible. With RAD Performance, I aim to explore the movement of sound sources in terms of dynamics and range, pushing the boundaries of what is audible, navigable and controllable in public space. Additionally, I seek to explore questions on the appropriation of space, participation, and negotiation of the city and urban history as an inclusive and feminist space. Through interactions between cyclists, loudspeakers, bodies, antennas and sensors along streets and neighbourhoods, various locations are recorded and performed. Squares and other (in-)significant locations get occupied: the city becomes a stage, with bicycles as chimaeras: part vehicle, part instrument, and part actress.
Conny Zenk is an artist and artistic researcher exploring hybrid contexts between performance, video art, sound art, and urban space. Her work includes projects in Asia and Europe, numerous collaborations in the field of audio-visual experimental concerts, as well as transdisciplinary and transcultural forms of action in public space. She is the founder of the art project RAD Performance.
Zenk, who lives and works in Vienna, completed her Diploma in Digital Art at the University of Applied Arts Vienna with distinction, where she is currently undertaking the Artistic Research PhD Programme. In the context of art and research, Zenk has lectured at the University of Applied Arts Vienna, the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, the University of Music and Theatre Munich, Alle Fine Arts University Addis Ababa and the Beijing Dance Academy, among others.