i and i
I and I – 2007
Surround sound DVD
10 segments in 32 minute cycles
Description:
i and i bridges the gap between the subject and the viewer by allowing the viewer to listen to a music track together with the subject in a video segment. The viewer is invited to share with the subject of the video segment what is usually a very private experience. The experience of listening to music on a portable listening device is very private and in fact separates the listener into his or her own space. In this project, the viewer listens along with the subject and is in tune with the reactions of the subject to the experience, subtle as they may be. This project puts the viewer into the space of the artwork in a very simple way. By putting on headphones, the viewer moves from the public space of the gallery to the private space of the subject. The name of this project (i and i) comes from a phrase most commonly heard in Reggae music. In fact, it comes from Rastafarian speech which eliminates the pronouns, you, me, us, them, etc. as divisive and replaces them with communal I and I. i and i embraces unity. The project unites the individual (viewer) with the individual (subject). By using the lower case i, reference to the ipod is being made.
Texts:
Alison Gillmor: “Audio/Video Installation Turns on MP3 Players…”. Winnipeg Free Press. May 20, 2010
Sandee Moore: “Michael Klein’s i and i”. Uptown Magazine. May 20, 2010
Exhibitions & Screenings:
i and i – Confederation Centre for the Arts. Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, 2007/08 (solo)
i and i – Video Pool. Winnipeg, Manitoba, 2010 (solo)
