November 21, 2006 – January 27, 2007

Location One is pleased to present the debut solo exhibition in NYC by artists Leesa & Nicole Abahuni, on view in our main gallery at 26 Greene Street from November 21st through January 27th 2007 (Tue-Sat, 12-6pm).

An opening reception and performance will be held on Wednesday, November 29th from 6 to 8 pm.

The multimedia installation, which was commissioned by Location One, is entitled In the Sky, is an exploration into the sharing of the senses and the interconnectedness between perception and sensation as experienced through visual, aural, and physical realms.

In the Sky populates the gallery with strands of metallic beaded-chain hung in patterns from the ceiling, creating a spatial architecture through which visitors navigate. This web will force the individual to slow down the body so that the senses can become more aware of changes in tactile, visual and aural experiences while at the same time generating waves of movement, reflections and shadows. The audio portion of the installation presents six separate channels of sound, progressively laid out from the front to the back of the gallery. On the back wall of the gallery a video screen will show the work of hands weaving and unweaving a tapestry, or the movement of an acrobat winding and unwinding his body on a rope. Overall, the installation explores the notion of repetition, the weaving and unweaving of time and memory, so that the senses can rise to a greater awareness of the space around them.

The Abahunis have always worked as a team. “As twins we are born collaborators” says Nicole, and Leesa continues: “Collaboration is at the root of our thinking and our work. We believe that the active forging of tactile, aural and visual perception between humans and in collaboration with technology asks questions that can yield ways of better understanding, seeing and hearing natural order.”

Opening night, November 29th 2006, will include a half-hour performance of a new composition, commissioned by Location One and created specifically for this installation by New York-based avant-garde musician Elliott Sharp, and performed with percussionists Danny Tunick and Christine Bard, and dancer Glen Rumsey. Using MAX/MSP software that generates and manipulates sound, the musicians will create an aural environment that responds to the movements of people within the space. The performance will be recorded and the resultant selection of sound files will be used as audio components throughout the duration of the installation.

Leesa and Nicole Abahuni participated in Location One’s 2005-2006 International Residency Program, with support from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Arts. In the Sky has received funding from the Peter Norton Family Foundation and assistance from Harvestworks.

The Abahunis studied at Goldsmiths College, University of London, MFA; Polimoda, Florence, Italy; and the School of Visual Arts, NYC, BFA in Computer Art. They have exhibited nationally and internationally including the 6th International Arts Biennial of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates; ICA, London; Sonic Interactions Conference, London; Redux, London; Gallery Mouri, Tokyo; Orb//Remote, Copenhagen; Half Machine Festival, Copenhagen; Eyebeam Atelier, NYC; Siggraph, Los Angeles; DUMBO Arts Festival, Brooklyn; DUMBO Arts Center, Brooklyn; 67 Gallery, Brooklyn; Deep Listening Space, Kingston; The Kitchen, NYC. Their solo performances include The New York Hall of Science, Queens and NYC in 2000. They have received awards and grants from the Experimental Television Center, NY; International Postgraduate Scholarship, Goldsmiths College, London, UK; Alumni Scholarship Award, School of Visual Arts, NY; and Award of Distinction, School of Visual Arts, NY.

Elliott Sharp is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, and performer who has personified the avant-garde experimental music scene in New York City for over thirty years. He has released over sixty-five recordings spanning the musical spectrum from blues, jazz, and orchestral music to noise, no wave rock, and techno music. Sharp describes himself as a lifelong “science geek,” having modified and created musical instruments from his teen years. He is an inveterate performer, both as a soloist (playing mainly guitar, saxophone and bass clarinet) and with a number of ensembles.

Glen Rumsey is originally from Greensboro, NC. He graduated from the North Carolina School of the Arts and moved to New York to join the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. Glen has danced and collaborated with many choreographers, including Mark Morris, Pam Tanowitz, Stanley Love, and Sarah Michelson. He has also developed a drag performance character, Shasta Cola, whose shows have received critical accolades both in the US and Europe. In 2005 he choreographed an original dance suite entitled “ignored in my heaven…” which he performed to critical acclaim at Location One with his dance troupe, the Glen Rumsey Dance Project. He has received a Creative Residency for 2006-2007 at Dance Theater Workshop. www.glenrumsey.com