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In Relative Obscurity II : Without An End In Mind (2025)
This project was funded in part by the Nevada Arts Council & the National Endowment for the Arts.
www.waxpigmelting.bandcamp.com
In Relative Obscurity: Without an End in Mind is an experimental, site-specific audio-visual project that consists of improvisational American Primitive Guitar with Field Recordings over Video Artwork. The title comes from an essay I wrote for the UNLV Marjorie Barrick Museum’s quarterly publication, Dry Heat Vol. 5.
You can Listen/Support on Bandcamp or listen on Spotify, etc.
Comprised of audio and video sourced from the Mojave Desert on the morning of October 19th, 2024, the 40 year anniversary of Goldwell Open Air Museum outdoor sculpture park in Rhyolite Nevada, just outside of world famous Death Valley. It was a windy, windy morning, which lent itself perfectly to the audio and video recordings I set out to make.
The 60+ mph gusts of wind smashed against the tin roof of the Red Barn I was recording in. The energy was palpable as the sun rose and people began to show up to set up the 40th year anniversary celebration happening that day. The guitar drones I played were in the key of singing sand dunes again, which I just intuitively enjoy to play in, regardless. The open tuning and loop pedal gave me some interesting options to toy with while I was improvising that morning, almost playing with the gusts/roof rumblings.
It felt powerful to be in conversation with the morning, itself, before such an event. Knowing how much of a milestone this day was to the site and the organization that has helped so many artists have a platform throughout the years.
Inspired by late Belgian Artist, Albert Szukalski and his improvisational approach to both the creation of artwork and to life in general, I decided documenting moments like this with sort of “audio postcards” to look back on in the future was essential.
If the Verbeke Foundation never published their book on him, all of Albert’s relics of moments would be lost. The importance of documenting my works is very much due to the grace and generosity of both Verbeke Foundation & Goldwell Open Air Museum for having me on their Board of Directors; a decision that would eventually result in the dissolution of the entire former board to resign weeks before their Bullfrog Biennial grant funded event in October 2023. That story is for another post, though.
Out of this dissolution of the board and it’s previous members’ cancellation of the “Bullfrog Biennial” event, Goldwell was in a bad state. As they say, though, “when one door closes, another opens”. I would help my friend Michelle Graves install an ironically titled sculptural work, “KEEP GOING”. This phrase and sculpture was meant to be installed at the Bullfrog Biennial event, and in spite of it’s cancellation, Suzanne allowed it’s installation.
Since then, Michelle has gone on to be elected President of the Board of Directors, ushering in yet another new era for Goldwell Open Air Museum, and a great sign that the organization will indeed, “keep going”.
