PRESS RELEASE 01 FEBRUARY 2018

»SKALAR« REFLECTIONS ON LIGHT AND SOUND

BY CHRISTOPHER BAUDER AND KANGDING RAY

IN COLLABORATION WITH CTM FESTIVAL 2018 AND KRAFTWERK BERLIN

PRESS DAY FRIDAY, 26.01.2018 11 AM – NOON

EXHIBITION 27.01. – 25.02.2018

MONDAY – THURSDAY 03 PM – 09 PM

FRIDAY - SATURDAY 01 PM – 11 PM

SUNDAY 01 PM – 09 PM

4 X LIVE PERFORMANCES SUNDAY, 04.02.2018 06 PM + 08:30 PM

SATURDAY, 24.02.2018 08 PM + 10:30 PM

PRESS RELEASE

SKALAR | REFLECTIONS ON LIGHT AND SOUND | ART INSTALLATION & PERFORMANCE

SKALAR is a large-scale art installation that explores the complex impact of light and sound on

human perception. Light artist Christopher Bauder and musician Kangding Ray give an audio-

visual narration of radiant light vector drawings and multi-dimensional sound inside the pitch-dark

industrial space of Kraftwerk Berlin. By combining a vast array of kinetic mirrors, perfectly

synchronized moving lights and a sophisticated multi-channel sound system, SKALAR reflects on

the fundamental nature and essence of basic human emotions.

With its titular Turmoil theme, CTM Festival 2018 sets the perfect environment to launch the artistic

venture of SKALAR. In collaboration with the festival, SKALAR’s installation version runs daily from 27

January to 25 February 2018, supplemented by four exclusive SKALAR LIVE performances on the 4 and

24 February. Kraftwerk Berlin houses this massive light and sound sculpture within its cathedral-like

industrial architecture, suspending the distractions of everyday life and fully immersing the audience into

an otherworldly experience.

SKALAR is an intense journey through the cycle of basic human emotions. The full spectrum of emotional

experiences is triggered by ever-changing tonalities in light, sound, and motion. Feelings of awe, surprise,

exhilaration, anticipation, and of having one’s senses overwhelmed are created, explored, and repeated in

cycles throughout the piece, providing a collective and yet highly individual emotional experience.

SKALAR is a central piece within light artist Christopher Bauder’s body of work, reflecting his deep

fascination with light. Light and darkness as endless cycles of day and night define our perception of time

and influence our emotions. In SKALAR, light is treated as a solid material that can be sculpted and

shaped to architectural dimensions, evoking abstract emotional associations. Intertwined with musician

and composer Kangding Ray’s tireless exploration of textures, rhythm, and sound design, the silence of

darkness is filled with iridescent formations of spatial light and sound. Measuring 45m in length, 20m in

width, and 10m in height, the generative luminous structure encompasses a perfectly synchronous

interplay of 65 motorized mirrors, 90 moving lights, and a multichannel sound system – elevating creative

possibilities to a whole new level.

SKALAR is made possible by the technical expertise and generous support of three main partners. The art

and design studio WHITEvoid manages the event’s production and provides custom software

development, KINETIC LIGHTS offers its high-performance precision motor winch systems, and ROBE

lighting provides the highest quality in moving light technology: ultra-sharp and homogeneous parallel light

beams that can hit designated positions with repeated precision and perfect colour consistency across 90

devices. All technical partners are helping extend the limits for this groundbreaking, cross-media project.

PRESS RELEASE

SKALAR | REFLECTIONS ON LIGHT AND SOUND | ART INSTALLATION & PERFORMANCE

ABOUT CHRISTOPHER BAUDER

Christopher Bauder is an artist and designer working in the fields of light and installation art, media design

and scenography. He focuses on the translation of bits and bytes into objects and environments, and vice

versa. Space, object, sound, light and interaction are the key elements of his work. In 2004 he founded the

multidisciplinary art and design studio WHITEvoid, which specializes in interactivity, media, interior

architecture, and electronic engineering.

Bauder has brought his installations and performances to events and spaces around the world, including

Centre Pompidou Paris, MUTEK Montreal, Fete des Lumieres Lyon, The National Museum of Fine Arts

Taiwan and the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. He is best known for his city-wide light

art installation “LICHTGRENZE”, created in 2014 together with his brother Marc for the 25th anniversary of

the Fall of the Berlin Wall.

www.christopherbauder.com

www.whitevoid.com

PRESS RELEASE

SKALAR | REFLECTIONS ON LIGHT AND SOUND | ART INSTALLATION & PERFORMANCE

ABOUT KANGDING RAY

There are few musicians who manage to explore the convergence between techno and experimental as

successfully as David Letellier aka Kangding Ray. The aesthetic domains of his home labels, Raster-

Noton and Stroboscopic Artefacts, epitomize his complex sound; an aesthetic that tests boundaries,

evolving tirelessly in its exploration of texture, rhythm, and sound design. Letellier’s foundations in rock

and musique concrète give his music a vitality and uniqueness that has won over fans the world over, from

discerning avant-garde electronica listeners all the way to devoted clubbers. Those who have been

following Letellier since his debut album, 2006’s Stabil, will recognise not only his meticulous and

constantly developing approach to sound design, but also the conceptual gravity behind his releases.

www.kangdingray.com

PRESS RELEASE

SKALAR | REFLECTIONS ON LIGHT AND SOUND | ART INSTALLATION & PERFORMANCE

ABOUT KRAFTWERK BERLIN

Located in the heart of the city, the former power station Kraftwerk Berlin is a piece of Berlin’s industrial

history. Built approximately at the same time as the Berlin Wall, its purpose was to power the central

districts of East Berlin. As of 1997, the building stood abandoned for many years, before Dimitri

Hegemann gave it a second life in 2006 by relocating his world-renowned techno club, Tresor, into a part

of the giant building. Slowly thereafter, the former power plant’s three levels have been carefully adapted

for their new (cultural) life.

Today, Kraftwerk Berlin stands as an enormous space and important part of the city’s established cultural

venues. The building houses many cultural events year-round, and is notably the home for the Berlin

Atonal festival, which was recently revived.

www.kraftwerkberlin.de

PRESS RELEASE

SKALAR | REFLECTIONS ON LIGHT AND SOUND | ART INSTALLATION & PERFORMANCE

ABOUT CTM FESTIVAL 2018

From 26 January – 4 February 2018, CTM 2018 returns to its constellation of exciting nightlife and cultural

venues in Berlin, including HAU Hebbel am Ufer, Berghain, YAAM, and Festsaal Kreuzberg. The festival

pairs a nighttime programme of concerts, club nights, and special events together with an exhibition,

installation and daytime conference and networking events. Together with transmediale – festival for art

and culture, the two festivals comprise one of the most comprehensive and relevant occasions in the world

for yearly reflection on digital culture.

Since its early days, CTM Festival has featured music and art that acts as a mirror for social and political

conditions. CTM 2018 Turmoil explores the state of music and sound practice in the face of a confusing

and critical present: What is the sound of turmoil? What are aesthetics of tumult? Which other sonic and

musical responses could we conceive of to counter the current overload of agitation? As it inquires into

these questions, this CTM edition also renews and strengthens a commitment to welcoming a wide range

of artists and audiences with diverse backgrounds.

www.ctm-festival.de

PRESS RELEASE

SKALAR | REFLECTIONS ON LIGHT AND SOUND | ART INSTALLATION & PERFORMANCE

TICKETS, FESTIVAL PASSES, AND PRESS ACCREDITATION

Tickets for the SKALAR installation are available for 12 € (9 € reduced), and SKALAR LIVE performances

are available for 25 €, via eventbrite. For the installation, adults accompanying children can save money

with a Family Ticket, priced at 20 €.

PRESS CONTACT

press@whitevoid.com

SKALAR PARTNERS & SPONSORS

Produced by:

WHITEvoid | KRAFTWERK Berlin | CTM Festival

Supported by:

ROBE | KINETIC LIGHTS | AUDI