<nettime-ann> Astronomical delight: stars shine in soap opera

[ANAT Communications <communicate@anat.org.au>]

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*Apologies for cross posting

Astronomical delight: stars shine in soap opera

It may sound like a strange way to explore astronomy, but the formation
of the Universe contains complicated storylines that are perfect for a
soap opera.

This is why artists Nicky Forster and Willoh S Weiland have created
their 'online cosmological drama', Void Love.

The artists will screen the pilot episode of their sound and video work
on 31 May 2009 at Head Quarters, a presentation space for cross
disciplinary art practice in Melbourne. Subsequent episodes will be
available online.

"Surely there is no greater melodrama than the unfolding of the
Universe itself," Forster said.

Completed during the International Year of Astronomy, Void Love was
inspired by research done at Swinburne University of Technology's
Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing. The work is the result of a
four-month residency based at the centre.

The 'Synapse' residencies, presented by the Australian Network for Art
and Technology (ANAT) in partnership with the Australia Council for the
Arts, support intensive partnerships between media artists and
scientists in research settings both in Australia and internationally.

Void Love will be narrated by Australian recording artist Kamahl. Its
plot centres on a woman awakening from a coma to explore what is known
and unknown about the formation of the Universe.

After basing artwork on astronomy research, Forster and Weiland
admitted it was a challenge to understand the breadth of the material.

"At first, it was like being on an astrophysics bootcamp," Forster
said. "The beauty of astronomy is that regardless of how difficult it
gets, it remains endlessly fascinating."

Dr Christopher Fluke, Swinburne astronomer and scientific partner on
the project, thinks it has enormous potential. "There is a very long
history of people telling stories about the night sky, which has
motivated many new discoveries in astronomy. Void Love is a great way
to continue that tradition."

Event details
What: Screening of Void Love's pilot episode
Where: Head Quarters, 55 High St, Northcote, Melbourne, Victoria.
When: Sunday 31 May 2009, 6.00pm to 7.30pm
Further episodes will be broadcast online from August 2009.
To receive email alerts when episodes become available
visit www.voidlove.tv.
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http://www.arts.sa.gov.au and the Visual Arts and Craft Strategy, an
initiative of the Australian, State and Territory Governments.

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