Tvísöngur is an artwork and open venue by the German artist Lukas Kühne. It was opened for the public on September 5, 2012. Embedded in the mountainside above the town of Seyðisfjörður, in a quiet area with breathtaking views of the fjord, it is dedicated to the exploration of space, sound, and frequency.
Tvisöngur is built of concrete and consists of five interconnected domes of different sizes. The heights of the domes are between 2 and 4 meters and they cover an area of about 30 square meters. Each dome has its own resonance that corresponds to a tone in the Icelandic musical tradition of five-tone-harmony, and works as a natural amplifier to that tone. The sculpture can be seen as a visualization of the five-tone-harmony tradition. The round form is chosen for its acoustic properties as well as its visual function in the landscape which results in a unique combination affecting visual and auditory senses.
Tvisöngur is open to everyone. It offers an acoustic sensation that can be explored and experimented with. The site’s solitude and tranquillity offer a perfect setting for singing or playing music alone, in harmony with others, for one’s own pleasure or for an audience. Tvisöngur offers unique possibilities for sound artists to work with its special acoustic properties for recordings etc. It is usually accessible all year round, as long as the snow and weather conditions permit it. To enjoy and experience Tvísöngur visitors need to walk up a gravel road for 15-20 minutes, which starts across from Brimberg Fish Factory.
Lukas Kühne’s artworks are dedicated to space and frequency. He lives in Berlin and Montevideo, Uruguay, where he heads the workshop Form and Sound at the Faculty of Arts of the State University. The sculpture Tvisöngur relates to a series of works by the artist dealing with musical forms, one of which is the sculpture Cromatico built in Tallinn, Estonia in 2011.
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Map of the location
The building process
Images from the building process are available here.
Supporters
Tvisöngur was realized in cooperation with Skaftell Center for Visual Art. Its construction has been supported by the Municipality of Seyðisfjörður, Síldarvinnslan hf, Blue Water Shipping, Goethe-Institut Dänemark, Nordecon Betoon (Estonia), and architect Rosario Nuin.