Lina Choi

Collaborative Residency DAÏMÔN-AXENÉO7 | August – September 2024
Lina Choi is a Montreal-based artist who majored in sculpture at the Royal College of Art in London, UK.
In her current artistic research, she explores different bodies of water, focusing on various aural imagery. She seeks immersive and meditative sound projects that encourage audiences to interact with her work through performance, installation, and audio composition. She participated in artist residencies at Centre DAÏMÔN (Gatineau) in 2024 and Est-Nord-Est (Saint-Jean-Port-Joli) in 2023.
Her sound project, Under the Waves, was presented at DARE-DARE (Montreal) and at Sporobole (Sherbrooke) through the PIVOT program curated by the Canadian League of Composers in 2023.

In 2022, she presented her sound performances at OBORO and RIPA (Montreal), and her sound installation was exhibited for Poste Audio at Centre Clark (Montreal).The artist would like to thank the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.

Photo credit: Jean-Michel Naud (Sporobole)

Waterscape/Paysage aquatique

ARTISTIC STATEMENT |

“I make sounds of water. I explore sounds from rivers to streams, the ocean, rain, and deep underwater. With each sound I explore, I delve into the profound question: why do humans harbor such an innate desire to listen to water?

Water, a symbol of life and tranquility, also embodies the complexities of human emotion — from the serene calmness it evokes to the deep currents of fear and uncertainty it stirs within us. It is this duality that captivates me, as water seamlessly transitions between embodying peace and instilling fear.

When I participated in the exhibition River of Oblivion in Korea in 2016, I encountered Gaston Bachelard’s book L’eau et les rêves [Water and Dreams] (1942) which ignited my curiosity and laid the foundation for my artistic research.

I posit that our affinity for water stems from primordial experiences, perhaps rooted in our prenatal existence within the womb. The comforting embrace of amniotic fluid resonates within us, fostering a deep-seated connection to water’s soothing embrace. During the performance Water and Dreams (2022), I made various sounds of water, witnessing a newborn baby serenely enveloped in the auditory embrace. It led me to think of a fetus in the womb with lingering sensory memories.

As I gaze upon the boundless expanse of the sea and rivers, I am overwhelmed by imaginations that we are perpetually drafting within the womb of the earth, forever intertwined with the ebb and flow of its waters.”

-Lina Choi, 2024

 

Following a collaborative residency at Centre de production DAÏMÔN, in partnership with AXENÉO7, Lina Choi’s installation Waterscape/Paysage aquatique will be presented in La Filature’s Salon des membres from September 13th to October 19th, 2024.

A vernissage for the fall opening of AXENÉO7 will take place on September 13th. On this occasion, Choi will present her performance Where the River Moves at 7:00 FM, as part of the 5th edition of Radio-Hull.