Sing The Body Electric Collection 1

Immersive Exhibition

Please note: This event took place in Nov 2024

With four artworks that explore tactile contact and gesture, this unique collection looks at how our bodies engage with the people and environments that surround us.

From invisible forms to be found in mid-air to a shifting mirror of many bodies matching your movements, come and explore what it means to find a story with your hands - and imagine your way into the sensation of touching someone else’s skin.

“The entire body thinks. You don’t think with the mind; you think with the entire fleshed existence.”

— Rosi Braidotti

A blurry black and white photograph of a person, mid-movement

Vast Body

Installation
Mixed Reality

To move, to dance, to flow, to see ourselves, but most of all, to see others; Vast Body is a collaborative experiment on movement.

Through some kind of magic mirror, Vast Body connects your physical body with the digital incarnation of many others, offering the chance to briefly inhabit alternative bodies through movement. Drawing on timely questions of identity, empathy and the constant whirling of our relationships, it is a playful, visually arresting act of imagination.

Vast Body is an installation you enter alone. In a screened off area, you face a projection of yourself. When you move your upper body, a wave of projections of people on a screen mimic your moves. Dance, turn around, wave, or move how you feel comfortable.

There is no beginning, middle and end - you can enter and leave at any time. The more you move, the more bodies you encounter.

Vincent Morisset and Caroline Robert

Vincent Morisset and Caroline Robert, from studio AATOAA in Montreal, are known for their works which combine craftsmanship and technology. In each of their projects, visitors are invited to become participants. These experiences put into perspective our relationship with others and the way we look at the world around us. The astonishing universe of Caroline and Vincent is embodied in different forms (interactive videos, installations in public spaces, XR, net art).

In the past, they have collaborated artistically with Arcade Fire, Skrillex and Sigur Rós. Their creations have been presented at the Venice Biennale, Sundance, SXSW and Japan Media Art Festivals. They have been the recipient of an Emmy Award, a Grammy and several Webbys.

In a dimly lit room a woman sits at a desk wearing a headset. Her back is to us.

Turbulence / Jamais Vu

Mixed Reality
Virtual Reality

XR artist Ben Andrews lives with a disability called vestibular migraine, which impacts his sense of orientation, balance and spatial awareness - and affects his experience of reality. Everything familiar suddenly seems new and different.

In this intimate mixed reality work, Andrews uses a VR headset and a depth camera to explore his own experience, asking audiences to reflect on the fragility of perception and the beauty of our ever-moving world.

You enter a private space, sit down at a desk, and put on a VR headset. Guided by the artist Ben's voice, you complete a series of simple tasks.

As time passes, the animated virtual world becomes unstable and difficult to navigate. This creates an imaginative bridge between you and Ben's experience of the world.

Duration: 10 minutes

Ben Joseph Andrews & Emma Roberts

Ben and Emma are a producer/director team working in location-based virtual realities. Their work merges immersive technologies within bespoke sensory environments to generate unique experiences that verge on the transcendent and sublime.

Their collaboration began with The Moon Is Gone And All The Kings Are Dead, commissioned for the 50th anniversary of the Victorian College of the Arts. The duo has also completed two projects for City of Melbourne: sci-fi installation allthestarstheybleedtogether (2016) and STARLESS (2017).

Before Turbulence, they made Gondwana - winner of the AIDC 2018 Greenpeace VR prize, which was selected for the Sheffield Doc/Fest Alternate Realities Talent Market (2019) and the Cannes XR Development Showcase (2020).

A still of a woman's face. Her eyes downcast.

I You We Me Us

Installation

This double monitor, silent film transcribes sensual expressions of intimacy, connection, love and hope – considering the potential of images, words and movement to convey visceral emotion and warmth.

Hands of family members, friends and lovers make gestures, play, move, touch and write small notes, interspersed with depictions of plants and time-lapsed flowers held under ultraviolet lights. Filmed by Salmon on 16mm colour film in her Glasgow flat, the work explores expressive kinship, love between a child and a parent, inter-generational, multi-gender affection, respect and care.

I You Me We Us is silent film presented on two stacked monitors. You can walk around the piece, sit on low seats, or lie down next to the moving images.

Duration: 17 minutes

Margaret Salmon

Margaret Salmon lives and works in Glasgow. Concerned with a shifting constellation of relations, such as those between camera and subject or human and animal, her work often examines the gendered, emotive dynamics of social interactions and representational forms.

Solo exhibitions of her work have been held at institutions including Secession, (2023), DCA (2018/19), Tramway (2018) Staatsgalerie Stuttgart (2015); Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, USA (2011); Witte de With Centre for Contemporary Art, Rotterdam (2007); and Whitechapel Art Gallery, London (2007).

Her work has been featured in film festivals and major international survey exhibitions, including The Yokohama Triennial (2024), The British Art Show 9 (2021/22), Glasgow International (2021), Berlin Biennale (2010) and Venice Biennale (2007) London Film Festival (2018, 2016, 2014). Salmon won the inaugural MaxMara Art Prize for Women in 2006, and the 2021 Paul Hamlyn Foundation Awards for Artists.

A woman wearing headphones and a mask stands before a black hole, feeling what's inside.

Invisible Sculptures (보이지 않는 조각들, 2018-2021)

Installation
Multi-sensory

Air Sculpture uses a technology that might not be suitable for people with pacemakers, people with hearing aids, or those who are pregnant. We advise these visitors to not take part in Air Sculpture - if this is the case for you when you arrive please let the Gallery Assistants know. Visitors with hearing aids are welcome to remove these and then take part, this is not a hearing-based work.

A series of sculptures that can only be “seen” by engaging through senses other than vision.

The series consists of perceptible objects that embody physical space but are completely invisible to the naked eye. Experience two pieces from this ongoing series – Sound Sculpture and Air Sculpture - then have a go at making the invisible form out of clay.

By challenging sighted peoples' dependence on vision, Song expands the way in which we encounter and understand the world around us.

This work is two separate pieces – a Sound Sculpture and an Air Sculpture.

For Air Sculpture, you place one or two hands above the plinth. You will feel pulses of air. Use touch and your imagination to find, feel and perceive the form of the sculpture.

For Sound sculpture you put on head phones and place one or two hands into the darkened space in front of you. The sound will change as your hands move. Use hearing and your imagination to find, feel and perceive the form of the sculpture.

Once you think you’ve felt the invisible form, sit down at a table and make it out of clay. Your work will form part of a collective response to Invisible Sculptures.

Due to the use of Ultrasonics, the Air Sculpture is not suitable for anyone who is pregnant, has a pace maker or is wearing a hearing aid. Please let a General Assistant know if this applies to you and they will turn the piece off.

Yeseul Song

Yeseul Song is a South Korean-born, NYC-based artist who uses technology, interaction, and participation as art media. Her work uncovers creative possibilities of non-visual senses through inventive sensory languages that advocate for imaginative and inclusive views of the world. Her work questions how we normally perceive, think, and interact through novel perceptual experiences. She explores and occupies non-traditional public spaces as well as institutions to challenge commonly held ideas about access and accessibility of art.

Her non-visual interactive experiences have inspired tens of thousands of people at indoor and outdoor spaces, including Clayarch Art Museum (South Korea), Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum (D.C.), Kansong Art Museum Daegu (Korea), Museum of Arts and Design (NY), Art in Odd Places (NY), and public spaces in NYC. Yeseul is an Assistant Arts Professor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts’ Interactive Telecommunications Program & Interactive Media Arts (ITP/IMA).

More information

To visit Undershed you need to book one of the timed slots. Please turn up for the beginning of your time slot.
Please note if you are more than 20 minutes late, you will not be able to enter the exhibition.

To avoid disappointment, we recommend you book tickets for Undershed in advance - you can do this online, in person at Watershed Box Office, or by calling the team on 0117 927 5100.

Your ticket gives you access for 60 minutes, so take your time exploring the artworks and please arrive at the start of your time slot

Prices

Mon - Fri before 16:00

£8.50 full / £5.00 concessions, 24 or under, disabled people and wheelchair users (plus 12% booking fee*)

Mon - Fri after 16:00 and weekends

£11.00 full / £8.50 concessions / £5.00 24 or under, disabled people and wheelchair users(plus 12% booking fee*)

*Booking fee applies to online and phone bookings only

Ticket offers and Group bookings

Group booking: Buy six or more tickets for a slot and get 20% off. To book this discount please contact Box Office in person or call 0117 927 5100.

Private booking: Book an entire slot for you and up to 11 other people for £100. To book a private slot please contact Box Office in person or call 0117 927 5100.

Concessions

Concessions apply to Full Time Students, Job Seekers Allowance and Employment Support Allowance, 66+ who have retired, Equity and BECTU members and disabled people. Disabled people and wheelchair users can come to any slot on any day for £5.00.

Where applicable please produce proof of eligibility when collecting a ticket.

You can find out more information about Access at Undershed here. If we can do anything to make your visit to Undershed easier, please get in touch with us - just email communications@watershed.co.uk and we'll be happy to help.

Frequently asked questions

You can visit Undershed from:

12:30 – 18:45 from Monday to Wednesday,
12:30 – 20:30 on Thursday and Friday,
11:15 - 21:00 on Saturday,
10:00 - 19:45 on Sunday.

To visit Undershed you need to book one of the timed slots and turn up at the beginning of your time slot. We recommend you book in advance to avoid disappointment.

To avoid any surprises, check the programme details in advance to view the specific schedule of the exhibition or event that you're interested in visiting.

Some of artworks do have access requirements. You can find out more information about them on our Access at Undershed page. If we can do anything to make your visit to Undershed easier, please get in touch with us - just email communications@watershed.co.uk and we'll be happy to help.

Your ticket gives you access for 60 minutes from the start of your booked session - this will give you plenty of time to experience all the artworks in the Collection.
Please note if you are more than 20 minutes late, you will not be able to enter the exhibition.

Yes, in the welcome area of the Undershed there are spaces to leave your belongings while you are inside the exhibition. A Gallery Assistant will be in this area at all times.

No - but the Café & Bar is on the first floor for refreshments before and after your visit to Undershed.

Yes - but please refrain from taking or sharing images of people without permission whilst they are participating in the work.

Any technological hardware that you use as part of the artworks will be cleaned by the Gallery Assistants on a regular basis.

Sing The Body Electric Collection 2 is suitable for children aged 10 and over.

Yes. You are welcome to use any of the toilet facilities in Watershed then come back into the space.

Yes, we welcome resting at any point while you’re in Undershed. There is seating in both the welcome area and in the exhibition space. There are also yoga mats and blankets should you need to lie down at any point - and please speak to the Gallery Assistants if so.

If you are more than 20 minutes late, you will not be able to entre the exhibition. So please arrive just before the time stated on your ticket.

Don't worry, if the artworks use unfamiliar technologies, the Gallery Assistants will always be there to help you work out what to do.

The duration of each piece varies, and you don't have to stay for the full time. Your ticket allows you access for 60 minutes, which is more than enough time to experience every artwork in the Collection, so there's no need to rush. You can return to an artwork if you like, and you don't need to experience them in a particular order.

There is a capacity of 12 for each bookable slot. If you prefer a quieter slot, we have introduced Relaxed Visits and Masked and Socially Distanced Visits, which both have reduced capacities.

We are currently evolving the Undershed model. We are likely to produce two themed and curated shows a year, plus a series of takeovers and showcases. We will issue a formal call for ideas based around our themes twice a year - look out for the first of these in early 2025. If you would like the Undershed curatorial team to consider your work outside of these themes, please fill out this form.

Sing the Body Electric Collection 2 is not suitable for children under 10 and some of the artwork would be difficult to experience whilst looking after a baby by yourself.

We have programmed a Gallery Babies session on Thu 19 Dec at 14:00. Come with your baby (12months and under) and a companion so each of you can take turns to go into the exhibition. The Gallery Babies session includes a 2 for the price of 1 ticket and there is limited availability. Booking for this Gallery Baby slot is open now.

Yes you can - please check the Calendar to find one our Relaxed Visit slots. To be kept informed about Relaxed slots and other accessible events please sign up to our Accessible Mailing List. You can also let us know about your access requirements by signing up to our Access Register.

What to expect during a Relaxed Visit to Undershed:

Maximum of 6 people in the space so you can spend longer with each of the artworks
Gallery Assistants will have more time to spend with you if you need them and explain what to expect so you can choose which if the artworks you are comfortable to try.
More seating options for you to rest and relax.
The welcome space is a quiet space where you can chill out if you need it.

Yes you can - please check the Calendar to find one our Masked and Socially Distanced slots. To be kept informed about Masked and Socially Distanced slots and other accessible events please sign up to our Accessible Mailing List. You can also let us know about your access requirements by signing up to our Access Register.

What to expect during a Masked and Socially Distanced Visit? (MSD):

Maximum of 4 visitors in the space.
Our Gallery Assistants will also be wearing masks.
Gallery Assistants will have more time to spend with you if you need them and explain what to expect so you can choose which if the artworks you are comfortable to try.
More seating options will available for you to rest and relax.
These events are open to everyone, but are part of our offer for audiences and customers who would rather they had more space and less people in the exhibition.
For this reason mask wearing is mandatory throughout your visit if you're not exempt.

Yes there is - you can listen to Amy Rose, Curator of Undershed talk about Collection 2 here. You will just need your phone and some headphones.

Undershed is new space for us and we're excited to welcome you to it. We know there will be things we can improve on and adapt. Please send us your thoughts and any outstanding questions you have - email us on communications@watershed.co.uk or have a chat with one of our Gallery Assistants.

Visiting Undershed for the first time

Undershed Gallery is located on the ground floor of Watershed - the entrance is to the right of the Box Office desk. If you haven't visited Watershed before, check out our Visit page for access, location and transport information.

Arrive at Undershed before the start time on your ticket. A Gallery Assistant will greet you in the welcome area, talk you through what to expect from the artworks, show you the technology, and answer any questions you may have.

When you are ready, you can move forwards through some curtains and enter the Exhibition space. Your ticket gives you access for 60 minutes, so take your time exploring the artworks.

A close up of a hand on flesh under a yellow and grey filter. — Artwork by Tony Stiles

What is Undershed?

Undershed is a new gallery for showing the best immersive and interactive artwork from all over the world. The first of its kind in Bristol and rare across the UK – this dedicated space will stage themed exhibitions that change every few months.

Undershed is a place to come together and experiment with new forms of storytelling. Come on in, keep an open mind and tell us what you think.

Sing The Body Electric Collection 1

Suitable for 12 years and over