Nickolas Mohanna

Nickolas Mohanna is an American artist and composer based in New York.[1] His interdisciplinary practice utilizes a variety of media to explore and blur the borders between music, sound art, video and drawing.[2] Within his compositions there is a "tendency of sculpting and orchestrating a minimal array of sounds into sonically rich and spacious atmospheres."[3] Most of the sounds are sourced from local environments.[4][5] While certain tracks "bury melodies in multiple layers of distortion to reveal their latent chromatic richness through gradually mutating textural contrast."[6] And the "consistent tone makes it all flow together like raindrops forming a lake."[7] In a Village Voice interview, he remarks that his aim is to create an "immersive stereo space where the sound would be reduced to its rawest form."[8] In addition to these works, he has also published a number of artists' books which have served as visual accompaniments, conceptual ideas, or graphic scores to his sonic practice on the imprint Run/Off; which he founded in 2014.[9][10] Mohanna attended San Francisco State University and went to the University of California, Davis for an MFA in Art Studio.[11][12] While there he took courses with Bob Ostertag,[13] Annabeth Rosen, Douglas Kahn, and Wayne Thiebaud.

Nickolas Mohanna
performing at the Silent Barn, Bushwick, Brooklyn, 2013
Background information
OriginNew York, United States
GenresExperimental
Avant-Garde
Sound art
Free Improvisation
Video art
Sound installation
Drone
Instrument(s)Computer, Guitar, etc.
Years active2003–present
LabelsKarlrecords, Longform Editions/Preservation, Aagoo Records, Run/Off
Websitenickolasmohanna.com

Discography
  • Optics Japan, Slow Flow Rec, Ltd. CD 2010. 
  • Phase Line US, Run/Off Editions & WFMU Free Music Archive, Digital/CD. 2015
  • Mantis Australia, Preservation, Ltd cassette. 2016
  • Smoke US, Aagoo Records, Ltd LP. 2019

Books / Prints
  • Theater. France: Kaugummi, 2010.  
  • Particles Brooklyn, New York: Medium Rare, 2010. 
  • Apparatus France: Lendroit éditions, 2011. Offset poster publication. Edition of 1000.
  • Interface  France: Lendroit éditions, 2011. ISBN 978-2-917427-11-8.
  • Floodlights Brooklyn, New York: Oso Press, 2012. 
  • Boundaries  Los Angeles, CA: The Ice Plant, 2012. Edition of 100.
  • LAND New York, New York: Run/Off Editions, 2015. ISBN 978-1-63415-661-5.
  • Heat Death  France: Lendroit éditions, 2017. ISBN 978-2-37751-005-4.
  • Spin Group New York, New York: Run/Off Editions, 2021. ISBN 978-1-64871-848-9.

Film / Video

His video and film work have been used in both gallery installations and for live sound performances; using a range of computer animation, found video, or appropriated footage. Many of them have mirrored various sound compositions by using collage or distortion to explore electronic & acoustic processes.

  • Ruins, video projection, 16mm film transferred to video, 3:50 min, black/white, sound, 2008
  • Ceremony, video, 5:20 min, color, sound, 2010
  • Elements, 16mm film transferred to video 3:50 min, color, sound, 2011
  • Generator, video projection, 2:00 min, black/white, sound, 2013
  • Passage, video projection, 4:56 min, black/white, sound, 2015
  • Quadrant, video projection, 2:00 min, color, sound, 2017
  • Subsystem, video projection, animation, 6:17 min, black/white, sound, 2018
  • Beam & Column, video projection, 2:00 min, color, sound, 2019

Collections

His artists' books have been archived at the Franklin Furnace Archive, Whitney Museum of American Art, National Gallery of Art, Museum of Modern Art New York, Los Angeles County Museum, Dallas Museum of Art, Cleveland Museum of Art, New York Public Library (Spencer Collection), Museum Ludwig (Cologne), and Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam.

References
  1. "Nickolas Mohanna". MoMA PS1. Retrieved 24 December 2010.
  2. "Biography". The Ice Plant.
  3. Fischer, Tobias. "Battling for supremacy". Tokafi. Tokafi.
  4. Catchpole, James (22 April 2016). "Mantis/Muovia". Fluid Radio. Fluid Radio.
  5. "Phase Line". Decoder Magazine.
  6. Cain, Nick, The WIRE, Issue 400, June 2017
  7. Masters, Mark, Bandcamp Daily
  8. Weingarten, Chistopher (16 December 2011). "Interview". Village Voice. Village Voice.
  9. "LACA Archive".
  10. "Printed Matter".
  11. Jones, Dave (23 May 2008). "A show called Six". UC Davis. University News.
  12. Filipinas, Rachel (5 June 2008). "Six". California Aggie. California Aggie.
  13. Raggett, Ned. "Reflectors". AllMusic. AllMusic.
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