The Calling is a three-channel video installation that focuses on whistling languages, ancient forms of non-verbal communication which are still used in 2013 to communicate in isolated and difficult landscapes.
To conduct research for The Calling, artist Angelica Mesiti travelled to the village of Kuskoy in Northern Turkey, the island of La Gomera in The Canary Islands and the Island of Evia in Greece where whistling languages are all still in use.
For these communities, whistling languages are in a process of transformation from their traditional use as tools for communication across vast lands into tourist attractions and cultural artefacts and are being taught to local school children.
The Calling is a poignant exploration of ancient human traditions evolving and adapting to the modern world. The work speaks to the tenacity and creativity of traditional cultures in the face of globalisation, technological progress and environmental flux.
Angelica Mesiti was the winner of the inaugural Ian Potter Moving Image Commission.
This interview with Angelica Mesiti provides insight into her work, 'The Calling', while exploring her fascination with extant and extinct languages.
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How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Previously on display
13 July 2014
ACMI: Gallery 2
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
Z000062
Subject category
Digital Art
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Materials
Multi-channel installation, three channel video, projection, colour and audio.