These images document ephemerality. When photographed, they were of construction sites. Now those sites are all established buildings. They may also show another aspect of ephemerality given that buildings such as these are often assembled speedily, at the lowest possible cost, and often with scant attention to their aesthetics. As such, they might have greater aesthetic appeal during their formative stage than after the work has been finished. They may even end up being demolished and replaced by a future construction site.The photography emphasises the repetitive geometry of scaffolds and frameworks. Reducing three dimensions back to two produces interesting overlays of triangles, parallelograms and other shapes straight from the mathematics textbook.
The soundtrack comments ironically on that repetitive geometry and on the construction process described above. It features a recurring phrase or parts thereof from the final ten bars of Prélude op. 28 no. 15 in D flat major by Frédéric Chopin (1810—1849). Tempo marks by the composer during this section are 'smorzando' (fading away), then 'slentando' (slackening, slowing down), and finally 'ritenuto' (gradual or possibly immediate slackening of speed). These contradict the notions of haste, urgency and furious mechanical noise associated with construction of buildings. Likewise, the descending melodic fourths, thirds, tones and semitones of the piece stand opposed to the visible ascension of a building as layers are erected. Where the piece does subtly reinforce the notion of repetitive processes is in the five bars prior to the final chord, where an insistently repeated A flat quietly hammers away before the cadence resolves on the tonic D flat closing chord.
Watch "Under construction" - a video by Ernie Althoff and John Campbell
here.
Comments