Looking Outwards – 04 – Sound Art

Camille Norment created an installation called Rapture in 2015. The piece highlights the dichotomy between peace and dissonance. At first glance, there are glass structures, speakers hanging from the ceiling, and a glass harmonica. The major sound elements create movement and excitment through dissonance – it cannot go unnoticed. There are twelve female voices coming from the speakers, clashing sounds from the violin, and the deep, clear humming of the harmonica. As the air molecules and hard molecules get excited, it shakes the glass and creates tension.

I admire that there are so many different ways to interpret the art. For instance, the sound of a glass harmonica could sound like a group of angels or something harmful at the same time. The algorithms that generates the work are the different sound frequencies and pitches that cause the glass to react as well.

Her artistic sensibilities manifest in the final form in that her piece is multisensory. There is a sculptural component, a composition by Norment, as well as a glass harmonica performance. She associates glass with the glass ceiling, a barrier that is invisible yet impenetrable. This social tension is reflected in her piece and leaves viewers with multiple different interpretions of her art.