John Hansard Gallery and MAST Mayflower Studios are pleased to present HALO, by renowned UK-based artist duo Semiconductor.
Book your tickets here.
HALO is an immersive installation resulting from Semiconductor’s artist residency at CERN, the European Laboratory for Particle Physics in Geneva.
The installation is a large-scale cylindrical structure housing a 360-degree projection of particle collision events which trigger an array of mechanical moving parts. These moving parts play upon 384 vertical wires causing them to resonate with an increasing intensity.
HALO was created using data collected by an experiment on the Large Hadron Collider at CERN which collides particles close to the speed of light to study the fundamental make-up of matter and the forces associated with it. These collisions are described by scientists as recreating conditions thought to have existed in our Universe shortly after the Big Bang.
The artwork, which was first presented during Art Basel in 2018, was commissioned by Audemars Piguet Contemporary and guest curated by Mónica Bello, Head of Arts at CERN. Sara Scott, Executive Director of MAST Mayflower Studios said: ‘We are delighted to be partnering with John Hansard Gallery for this fantastic exhibition, we hope this will be the first of many collaborations with our very near neighbours on Guildhall Square as we both deliver inspiring experiences for Southampton. It’s great to have this outstanding work in our building as we establish MAST Mayflower Studios as a cultural hub in the city providing a diverse programme of quality and accessible art.’
HALO receives its UK premiere in Brighton, where Semiconductor are based, at Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts as part of Brighton Festival 2021 from 19 May–4 June 2021, before being shown at MAST Mayflower Studios, Southampton from 21–30 June 2021 with free timed entry tickets.
HALO is an Audemars Piguet Art Commission, curated by Mónica Bello and first presented in the context of Art Basel in Basel in 2018, in collaboration with CERN.
HALO presented by John Hansard Gallery and MAST Mayflower Studios is supported by Arts Council England. The events programme is produced by Lighthouse and part of Re-Imagine Europe.
HALO was fabricated in collaboration with millimetre and Polyspace.
About Semiconductor
Semiconductor is UK artist duo Ruth Jarman and Joe Gerhardt. Over the past twenty years of collaboration they have become known for an innovative body of work, which explores the material nature of our physical world and how we experience it through the lenses of science and technology. Their work has been exhibited internationally including at The 14th Media Art Biennale Santiago, City Gallery, New Zealand, CCCB, Barcelona, 21st Biennale of Sydney, Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, ZKM, Karlsruhe, ArtScience Museum, Singapore, House of Electronic Arts, Basel, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, FACT, Liverpool and Royal Academy of Arts.