Sleeplessness

“Insomnia is not defined as a simple negation of the natural phenomenon of sleep. The dream is always on the edge of awakening, it communicates with the vigil while trying to escape it. The dream listens to the vigil that threatens him and calls him with request.” – Emmanuel Lévinas, God, Death, and Time

Sleeplessness (Or when we’re sleeping, we’re still listening) refers to the recording machine, which did not sleep during the making of any of the recordings used in this work. Sleeplessness contains only recordings made in intimacy, mainly during sleep. Some recordings were made with only me present, others in the company of another person, and others in the company of two or more people, with or without me present. Some nights were recorded throughout the whole sleeping process; on other nights, all sounds except silence were recorded. All recordings have been ultra-processed in different phases and in different ways to preserve our identity. Only we know who we are. Fourteen nights were recorded between 2008 and 2020 in different beds, rooms, houses, cities and countries, and with different people. Intended for ethereal listening during sleeping time. Designed for high-quality speakers, not for headphones.

“All the sleepers fall into the same, identical, uniform dream. This dream consists precisely in not differentiating. That is why the night, with the darkness and, also, the silence suits him.” – Jean-Luc Nancy, Tombe de sommeil

Technical info

1st Night – 2008 in Madrid with E. & M.
2nd Night – 2009 in Madrid with R.
3rd Night – 2010 in San Sebastián with L.
4th Night – 2011 in Madrid with L.
5th Night – 2012 in Leitza with P. & C. & D.
6th Night – 2013 in San Sebastián with I. & U.
7th Night – 2014 in San Sebastián with R.
8th Night – 2015 in Barcelona with S.
9th Night – 2016 in San Sebastián with R.
10th Night – 2016 in San Sebastián with R.
11th Night – 2017 in San Sebastián with R.
12th Night – 2018 in Vitoria with R. & more people.
13th Night – 2019 in Paris with A.
14th Night – 2020 in Barcelona with A.

Broadcasts

Streamed on Radio Bloc ORAL (2023).
Streamed on Radio Insomnia as part of the InSomnolence exhibition, Montreal (Canada).