freshAZAN

sculpture and sound installation
Shahram Entekhabi & motiroti

Azan is the Muslim call to prayer, sung five times a day in Arabic from the minaret of a mosque.

CONTEXT
For the early European traders and explorers azan was a signifier of the mysteries of the Orient, whilst for the crusaders it was akin to provocation. Rising above the deserts of the Middle East the azan could be heard mixed with the chimes of church bells and chazzan from synagogues. In India bells from Hindu temples, the harmonium from Sikh gurdwaras and the chanting from Buddhist temples would infuse with the azan. However, now there is less and less of this mixed melody. In the current climate of growing concerns around terrorism it rings a big bell of alarm! It is the ‘language’ of the other that is not understood.

LANGUAGE
Language is of huge interest to us. Language is an element of culture that contributes to every aspect of human relationships. A tool to communicate, it translates cogitations into learnt and spoken words. Because of language’s proficiency to encode an extensive range of meaning, and represent almost all ideas including thoughts, it is the ultimate cultural artifact. Is it then perhaps that languages have ideology, power and economy heavily invested into them? The movement to translate the Bible into English provoked the most violent opposition and was considered impious and profane. Same comparisons can be drawn with the translations of the Torah, Quran and other sacred texts.
Why is there a fear of languages that are foreign?
Why do we aspire to speak certain languages more than others?
What is the currency of language?

WHY freshAZAN
English is the most dominant language in the field of commerce, culture and politics. In a globalised world, it is no wonder that West Europeans and Americans are supreme, with ‘other’ white Europeans behind and migrants from outside Europe struggling to compete for cultural clout. In the light of cultural competitiveness the weight of language takes on a new meaning.
As artists exploring dynamics of culture and identity, essence and meaning is totally invaluable. Reciting the azan in Arabic five times a day, whilst being oblivious to its meaning is no different to repeating the Latin mass behind the priest or being one of the millions who sing along in karaoke bars without understanding – just chanting like a ‘mantra’. However the lyrics usually displayed along the screen gives some sense of ownership to the people as they pick up the microphone to perform.
freshAZAN proposes to extend the ownership of a misinterpreted language by translating the azan in many different languages; languages that are at once inclusive and exclusive. For instance by translating it into Polish, German or Spanish, it can allow those understanding the language a better glimpse into the ‘otherness’, a hook whereby the otherness can be interpreted through a sense of the familiar.

PROPOSAL – outside and inside
OUTSIDE
freshAZAN combines informal architecture with live art practice, being both transitory in nature yet having transformational qualities at the same time.
The proposed para-architecture constructed out of scaffolding and caution tape resembling a minaret (a tall thin tower) will host the alternative azan by performers appearing within the structure. Sited in the middle of busy pedestrian pathways of Birmingham city centre, nestled between the church, street market and shopping malls, the para-architecture will imitate its surrounding spaces to reflect meaning back into itself. It is fake, it doesn’t have a function and yet by its sheer size and visibility it will significantly gain power.
By citing this unfamiliar object within a market visited by people from many cultural backgrounds, it becomes a point of convergence for collective social and intellectual activity (it becomes a symbolic mosque). It morphs into the familiar, as it communicates with them in a variety of languages, and repeats and chants like the vendors vying for attention. It seduces people to congregate like shopping malls do, yet there are no heavy bags to carry or empty wallets, but pure social exchanges.
The artists will work with a team of local architecture/art students to develop the design and construct the structure. The structure will be erected in view of passers by. Every morning it will rise and every evening it will collapse, to start all over again the next day. All day long the artists will continue to engage in giving form and shape to the fragile structure with caution tape, taking breaks in between whilst the azan emits intermittently in different languages. The same team of students with instant (polaroid) cameras will get passers by to pose against the backdrop of the structure, akin to the tourists in front of the Taj Mahal. Each member of the audience will be given their instant photo as a souvenir, while one copy will be kept for the gallery installation.

INSIDE
Gallery installation with souvenir photos, video and sound portraits
Located in close vicinity to the site of the para-architectural structure, the gallery installation will house a black cube in the centre of its space. Assembled from temporary office partition-screens, referencing the World War II memorial from the city centre and the Kaaba, the souvenir photos will be pinned upon it in neat rows.
Four large monitors will hang from the corners of the gallery with looped video portraits of around 40 people from the local Eastern European communities. Filmed in complete silence and against a black backdrop, they will appear quite still for 2-3 minutes, looking directly into the camera. Further portraits, of people from the Somali, Algerian and other minority communities will be added throughout the exhibition.
Sound will wrap and revolve around the room, emanating from four sets of wall mounted speakers. This soundtrack will consist of recordings of people describing themselves in the third person. They will talk of their unique qualities, aspirations and wishes, rather than their ethnicity. These will be mixed with recordings of people giving their impression of the other people from the souvenir photos displayed on the black cube.
Working with galleries will enable freshAZAN to be a catalyst for a programme of events, involving symposia and talks, and other formal and informal exchanges, to extend dialogues between different groups.

© Shahram Entekhabi & Ali Zaidi Artist/ Director motiroti London, UK

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