Britni Bicknaver
Portfolio Sample
*For Accuracy Please Use Headphones When Possible
Cinema of Memory
Cinema of Memory illuminates an archival photo album by simulating the cognitive interplay when one is confronted with familial photos of decades past—images distant through time, yet not distant through relation.
Images sourced from Bicknaver’s family photo albums are brought to life by pairing them with custom cinematic soundtracks. This creates subtle fictions that reflect ones we all unintentionally fabricate in an effort to make sense of a familial past—a past we are inherently part of, but not always present for.
Rather than choosing ubiquitous portraits, images that are saved, yet rarely unearthed, are used. They show unidentifiable figures in sometimes common experiences—high school sporting events, restaurants, etc.—invoking a relatable, nostalgic familiarity in the viewer.
Cinema Of Memory (Installation View), Audio, Custom Made Light Box, Head Phones, Found Photograph, 19"x15"x5", 2019
Cinema Of Memory: Lake, Audio, Custom Made Light Box, Head Phones, Found Photograph, 19"x15"x5", 2019
Cinema Of Memory: Volleyball, Audio, Custom Made Light Box, Head Phones, Found Photograph, 19"x15"x5", 2019
Cinema Of Memory (Installation View), Audio, Custom Made Light Box, Head Phones, Found Photograph, 19"x15"x5", 2019
Cinema Of Memory: Lake (Detail), Audio, Custom Made Light Box, Head Phones, Found Photograph, 19"x15"x5", 2019
Cinema Of Memory: Volleyball (Detail), Audio, Custom Made Light Box, Head Phones, Found Photograph, 19"x15"x5", 2019
Special Collections: Reflections on the Mercantile Library
Special Collections (2022), an unorthodox audio tour of Cincinnati’s famed Mercantile Library, takes listeners on a contemplative journey through the institution’s collection. Focused through an anthropological lens and presented in the form of a ten-chapter audiobook accessed through a QR code, this piece surveys the human epoch—from the myths of our creation to the realities of our impending demise. Couched within this investigation is an acknowledgment of the most significant mark humanity will leave behind: our collective knowledge.
Special Collections explores the notion of an ideal standard by which cultural products are measured, valued, and conserved. It examines the objects and ideas we decide to canonize, the injustices that often impact these decisions, and our inventions of preservation that will ultimately lead to our destruction. Utilizing the library as a mirror, we can see ourselves within the fruits of our labor and curiously ask in the manner of Paul Gauguin, Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? (1897-98).
Special Collections (accompanying information card—front), Audio Instillation, 42 min. 11 sec., 2022
Special Collections (accompanying information card—back), Audio Instillation, 42 min. 11 sec., 2022
Special Collections, Chapter 1: In the Beginning (Video substitution for in-person experience), Audio Installation, 2 min. 39 sec., 2022
Special Collections, Interlude: Gee (Video Substitution for In-Person Experience), Audio Installation, 2 min. 39 sec., 2022
Audio Tour
Audio Tour disguises itself as a conventional museum audio tour for Cincinnati’s Contemporary Arts Center. Visitors receive a media player, headphones, and an information card. But unlike a standard audio tour, Audio Tour ignores the exhibits on display. Instead, it addresses philosophical, historical, and universal ideas and information, framing the CAC in alternative ways.
By juxtaposing the story of the land on which the museum sits with its present-day appearance—its modern facilities, idiosyncrasies, employees, and other inner workings—the piece strives to aurally frame the museum in its specific time and place. Audio Tour seeks to synthesize the past, present, and future of the CAC.
Audio Tour (charging station), Audio, Media Players, Charging Station, and Pamphlet, Duration: 18 min. 25 sec., 2017
Audio Tour (museum sign), Audio, Media Players, Charging Station, and Pamphlet, Duration: 18 min. 25 sec., 2017
Audio Tour (Promotional Video), Video, 1 min. 37 sec., 2017
Audio Tour: Introduction (Video Supplement for In-Person Experience), Audio, Media Players, Charging Station, and Pamphlet, 2 min. 39 sec., 2017
Audio Tour- Drinking Fountain, (Video Supplement for In-Person Experience), Audio, Media Players, Charging Station, and Pamphlet, 2:01, 2017
Nature's Clock
Nature's Clock (2025) is an audio experience for visitors of the Get Into Nature gallery at the Cincinnati Museum Center. A meditative and narrative sound experience, Nature's Clock transports listeners further into the subject of the Gallery—the edge of Appalachia—through the lens of our yearly seasonal cycle. Divided by seasons, each track intimately captures nature's mystical systems while transporting you to the Appalachian forest.
Autumn
Summer
City Under Exposure
Utilizing our collective archive from the Cincinnati Public Library, City Under Exposure explores natural disasters that have affected our community. Eight photographs captured by citizens of Cincinnati represent some of the most extraordinary moments from 140 years of the city's past. From the devastating floods of 1883 and 1937 and the tornados of 1969 and 1974, these historical images capture the (un)common experiences that can sometimes evade the vernacular.
In addition, unique soundtracks (accessed through QR codes found on the cases) bring these static visual artifacts to life. By immersing the viewer into past lived experiences, these moments in time can give new generations of Cincinnatians a new perspective and connection to a place they thought they knew so well.
City Under Exposure (Installation View), Plexiglass Exhibition Cases, Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photographs, Audio collage, Dimensions Vary, 2022
City Under Exposure (Installation View), Plexiglass Exhibition Cases, Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photographs, Audio Collage, Dimensions Vary, 2022
City Under Exposure (Installation Detail), Plexiglass Exhibition Cases, Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photographs, Audio Collage, Dimensions Vary, 2022
City Under Exposure: Blizzard of 1977, Plexiglass Exhibition Case, Cut Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photograph, Audio Collage, Dimensions Vary, 1 min. 20 sec., 2022
City Under Exposure: Blizzard of 1977 (Selected Details), Plexiglass Exhibition Cases, Cut Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photograph, Audio, Dimensions Vary, 1 min. 20 sec., 2022
City Under Exposure: Blizzard of 1977 (Selected Detail), Plexiglass Exhibition Case, Cut Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photograph, Audio Collage, 30" x 33" x 30", 1 min. 20 sec., 2022
City Under Exposure: Tornado of 1974, Plexiglass Exhibition Case, Cut Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photograph, Audio Collage, 30" x 33" x 30", 2 min. 42 sec., 2022
City Under Exposure: Tornado of 1974 (Selected Details), Plexiglass Exhibition Case, Cut Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photograph, Audio Collage, 30" x 33" x 30", 2 min. 42 sec., 2022
City Under Exposure: Tornado of 1974 (Selected Details), Plexiglass Exhibition Case, Cut Vinyl, Re-Printed Found Photograph, Audio Collage, 30" x 33" x 30", 2 min. 42 sec., 2022
Soundtracks For Gaul
Soundtrack for Tombeau De Jovin (Installation View), Appropriated and Native Audio, 1 min. 31 sec., 2021
Musée Saint-Remi, Reims, France
Soundtracks for Gaul focus on three Roman artifacts from the Musée Saint-Remi in Reims, France. A tomb of a general, a head of Mercury from the facade of a temple and an Obelisk dedicated to the god Jupiter are all brought to life through custom made soundtracks. In Soundtrack for Tombeau De Jovin we hear a narrative of the life of Flavius Jovinus, a prosperous Roman general credited with many successful military campaings. In Soundtrack for Tête De Mercure we are confronted with the Roman god Mercury who is animated with breath as we look into his 1,700 year old eyes. And lastly, Soundtrack for la colonne de Jupiter recalls its former position marking a natural spring and the changing of seasons to reference the god unto which it is dedicated. The context has changed for these objects—once revered for their sacred power now revered for surviving time. The soundtracks attempt to activate the imagination of the museum’s visitors as they look at evidence of their city's former life.
Soundtrack for Tête De Mercure (Installation View), Appropriated and Native Sound, 1 min. 40 sec., 2021
Musée Saint-Remi, Reims, France
Soundtrack for Tombeau De Jovin, Appropriated and Native Audio, 1 min. 31 sec., 2021
Musée Saint-Remi, Reims, France
River Gaze
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River Gaze is a soundtrack for a common beloved experience—sitting by the Ohio River and staring into its presence—its movement, majestic beauty, and mysteriousness. Through the layering of environmental sounds and music, this soundtrack is a poetic expression that is both a narrative and an admiration of this natural body of water. Accessed through a QR code found on signage, the track can play on any smart personal device and can be experienced anywhere along the river. The encompassing piece will give a contemplative experience for the listener and substantially enhance their visit and relationship to the river.
Installation View, BLINK, Cincinnati, OH, 2024
Installation View, BLINK, Cincinnati, OH, 2024