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Art

Silence turned gold

The Pierre Boulez Saal concert hall bridges the summer break with a surprisingly silent visual experience: installation "The Gold Projections".

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Somnium (2017) by Joe Ramirez showing at Berlin’s Pierre Boulez Saal.

With the concert programme on a hiatus, it’s quiet at the Pierre Boulez Saal in August. But that doesn’t mean there is nothing going on there: Until the end of the month, the Saal opens the doors of its pitch-perfect auditorium for The Gold Projections by Berlin-based Californian artist Joe Ramirez. On display are two hand-crafted golden disks, facing each other in the elliptical concert space, with two films being projected on one of them. “Vermilion” and “Somnium” feature poetic interactions of painting and moving image, and the fully darkened hall turns the whole experience into a quiet, meditative break – all in perfect silence! Up to 200 visitors are admitted at a time and they must leave their phones and shoes at the door. Once inside, everyone is invited to walk around to observe the work from different angles. The films material is three hours long, the visit’s duration optional. If the silence gets too loud, it’s possible to take a break in the courtyard and come back for more. Screenings are on Friday and Saturday nights from sunset (currently 9pm) to 1am and tickets, as usual for Pierre Boulez Saal, don’t come cheap: €14 for advanced bookings, €10 on the night, €7 concessions. It’s a little steep, but hey, silence is gold!

Through Aug 31