︎
ROMAN SUSAN
INFO
ARTISTS
SUPPORT

PRESENT
FUTURE
PAST
Gwyneth Zeleny Anderson
Qualiascope
1224 W Loyola Ave, Chicago IL
November 18, 2014 - December 6, 2014



In his book of fiction Phi: A Voyage from the Brain to the Soul, neuroscientist Guilio Tononi writes of a “qualiascope”, a hypothetical device that measures integrated information of surrounding spaces and things. For her exhibition, Gwyneth Anderson borrows this device from Tononi in order to research Roman Susan’s space.



“Qualia" are subjective experiences: pain from a stubbed toe, the taste of food, the perception of color. These experiences can only be expressed and interpreted - there are no tools for systematically measuring one’s qualia.

Contained within Roman Susan’s space are phenomena for which there are tools for measuring: temperature, light movement, volume of sounds. Are these more objective, more real, than an individual’s perceptions, due to their quantifiability? Anderson responds to this question by treating the phenomena as subjective experiences.



Qualiascope invites the public to understand how a room feels: to repeatedly watch light move from side to side; to feel limited warmth; to hear sudden conversations; to absorb water. Each isolated experience, presented in the form of flip books and various animation objects, contains a series of increments much like any calculating tool. The sounds and images, separate yet connected, allow the visitor to control their own rate of “playback”, as well as suggest a different scale of duration: a room’s sense of time.

In this environment, metaphor is as valid a measuring device as a thermometer, and empathy provides objectivity.

Street view of Qualiascope installation Sounds Unheard, Then Heard Suddenly – Flip books and shelf, 2014 Fluids, Absorbed and Accumulated – Flip books and shelf, 2014 Incremental Meld – Yardstick, fringe, 2014 Incremental Meld – Yardstick, fringe, 2014 Giving Power/Receiving Directions – Dry transfer lettering, 2014 Fulgerite – Vibrational speaker, audio, stethoscope, 2014 Fulgerite – Vibrational speaker, audio, stethoscope, 2014 Fulgerite – Vibrational speaker, audio, stethoscope, 2014 Installation view Gnomon (Kitchen Lamp) – Light box, photographs on transparency, 2014 Aberrations – Microscope, slides, 2014 Aberrations – Microscope, slides, 2014 Aberrations – Microscope, slides, 2014 Thermometer (The Relative Distances of Second-Hand Shirts From 1224 W. Loyola) – Second-hand shirts, hangers, labeling, piping, 2014 Thermometer (The Relative Distances of Second-Hand Shirts From 1224 W. Loyola) – Second-hand shirts, hangers, labeling, piping, 2014 Thermometer (The Relative Distances of Second-Hand Shirts From 1224 W. Loyola) – Second-hand shirts, hangers, labeling, piping, 2014 Gnomon (Lists) – Clock, shelf, drawings in notebook, 2014 Gnomon (Lists) – Clock, shelf, drawings in notebook, 2014 Gnomon (Lists) – Clock, shelf, drawings in notebook, 2014 Extension – Overhead projector, extension cord, thread, transparency, 2014 Extension – Overhead projector, extension cord, thread, transparency, 2014 Extension – Overhead projector, extension cord, thread, transparency, 2014 Extension – Overhead projector, extension cord, thread, transparency, 2014 Extension – Overhead projector, extension cord, thread, transparency, 2014 Absorption Rolodex – Muslin, thread, piping, wood, 2014 Absorption Rolodex – Muslin, thread, piping, wood, 2014 Reflex – Dry transfer lettering, 2014 Aural Thermometer – Thermometer, headphone jacks, audio, headphones, 2014


Qualiascope Exhibition Guide (PDF)