Buchmann, S: Towards a Further Word

Katarina Zdjelar's video, sound, and text works all document a moment of physical expression, which takes on visual and audible form in the transition from speech to music. They show how historical and geopolitical forces impinge on individual or collective desires. Take, for example, The Perfect Sound (2009), in which the artist recorded a session conducted by an English speech therapist, as he helps an immigrant to lose his foreign accent using voice-training exercises specifically designed for the purpose. The therapist intonates and the patient copies the alien sounds. The voice training is aimed at new arrivals in the country to help facilitate their smooth integration into British society and protect against abuse--this, at least, is the intention of the authorities. The publication Towards a Further Word is based on Zdjelar's solo exhibition at the Bielefelder Kunstverein in 2014 and brings together a selection of works from the last six years.