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by María Pétursdóttir
About
Portrette subject 2
Portrette subject 3
Portrette subject 4
The project
The project
The project Identity is a MA PIP project in my journey in the NAIP program at LHÍ/IUA in Reykjavik. The work is an audio/video installation set up in the gallery Slökkvistöðin in Gufunesi for 5 projectors. One of them with running interviews and four of them where people can listen to the sound portraits (song and video) made as a side product from the interviews. The music videos are made with selected themes from each interview and the interviewed person's own voice gradually blends into each song. The interviewed person becomes part of the music through spoken language.
In the interviews, which are anonymous, I ask the question of how people perceive their identity and how it has shaped them through life. The subjects, ranging from subject 1-4 as I call them (instead of using their real names), then automatically go on a journey through their life span to some extent. They are also asked certain key questions like what kind of music they have listened to through time and how music has influenced them through out their life. They get a question about the sound from their childhood or sound image of their mothers.
The interviewed subjects of 4 are a gay woman, a woman living with disability an former asylum seeker that went through human trafficking and a tran woman. Those definitions are only superficial but indicate that all of them are having class struggles of some sort or are in human rights battle but sertenly they all have a story to tell or life experiences that have impacted their identity and self image. They all have in common a traumati childhood with violence or neglect.
Portrette subject 1
Portrait subject 1
Portrait subject 2
Portrait subject 3
Portrait subject 4
The project
Interview with subject 1
Interview Audio only Subject 1
00:00 / 01:04
Interview with subject 2
Interview Audio only Aubject 2
00:00 / 01:04
Interview with subject 3
Interview Audio only Subject 3
00:00 / 01:04
Interview with subject 4
Interview Audio only Subject 4
00:00 / 01:04
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Sound of Sadness
I was born on a Bedrock
Song with many verses
Mirror,mirror...
The process of composing these songs unfolds through multiple layers. I draw on each person’s favorite songs, memories, and what I call the “mother’s sound image” — subtle traces that might have a part in shaping the identity. I begin by selecting phrases from the interviews, using them to craft new lyrics that echo their words. In this role, I become a second narrator: an extra voice that accompanies and expands their story.
I layer my voice with the interviewee’s own, creating a textured storie telling within the music. I also study the structure of the songs they mention — the chords, the instruments, the sonic qualities — and weave these elements into the composition. To personalize each song further, I cut fragments of their recorded voice and embed them selectively into the soundscape. Improvisation is key to this process; it allows me to move beyond the literal, letting the songs become more abstract as I interpret the outlines they offer, experimenting with ways to grasp and reflect their identity.
In the gallery, the installation recalls both a photo booth with the blue velvet curtains and the recording studio where the interviews took place. Visitors are invited to sit, listen, and contemplate questions of identity — not only in the portraits presented but within themselves while listening to fragments of the interviews.
Small Title
"Identity: Sound Portrait by María Pétursdóttir
is her final project in NAIP music department of LHÍ /IUA
This interdisciplinary project combines music, visual art, and activism and is an intimate and thought-provoking exploration into the complexity of human identity.
First presented as a five-projector installation at Slökkvistöðin in Gufunes, Reykjavík, in April 2025, this work now lives online. It brings together four interviews with individuals who have faced marginalisation and resistance, and four song-portraits — composed by the artist and accompanied by collaged video — that offer an additional voice to their stories.
Four strong women share their stories, speaking about their mothers and the soundscapes of their childhood, as well as how their life experiences shaped their identities.
The interviews, recorded anonymously and in a shadow silhouette, delve into how each person's identity has been shaped by their experiences, including the role of music in their personal struggles and victories.
In parallel with the interviews, the author has created a personal composition, weaving the participants' voices into unique songs or soundtracks.
Trigger Warning: Some aspects of the stories may be distressing for those who have experienced domestic violence, neglect, or sexual abuse. Viewer discretion is advised.
Portrette subject 1
About
Portrette subject 2
Portrette subject 3
Portrette subject 4
The project
The project
The project Identity is a MA PIP project in my journey in the NAIP program at LHÍ/IUA in Reykjavik. The work is an audio/video installation set up in the gallery Slökkvistöðin in Gufunesi for 5 projectors. One of them with running interviews and four of them where people can listen to the sound portraits (song and video) made as a side product from the interviews. The music videos are made with selected themes from each interview and the interviewed person's own voice gradually blends into each song. The interviewed person becomes part of the music through spoken language.
In the interviews, which are anonymous, I ask the question of how people perceive their identity and how it has shaped them through life. The subjects, ranging from subject 1-4 as I call them (instead of using their real names), then automatically go on a journey through their life span to some extent. They are also asked certain key questions like what kind of music they have listened to through time and how music has influenced them through out their life. They get a question about the sound from their childhood or sound image of their mothers.
The interviewed subjects of 4 are a gay woman, a woman living with disability an former asylum seeker that went through human trafficking and a tran woman. Those definitions are only superficial but indicate that all of them are having class struggles of some sort or are in human rights battle but sertenly they all have a story to tell or life experiences that have impacted their identity and self image. They all have in common a traumati childhood with violence or neglect.
Portrette subject 1
Portrette subject 1
Portrette subject 2
Portrette subject 3
Portrette subject 4
The project
The project
The project Identity is a MA PIP project in my journey in the NAIP program at LHÍ/IUA in Reykjavik. The work is an audio/video installation set up in the gallery Slökkvistöðin in Gufunesi for 5 projectors. One of them with running interviews and four of them where people can listen to the sound portraits (song and video) made as a side product from the interviews. The music videos are made with selected themes from each interview and the interviewed person's own voice gradually blends into each song. The interviewed person becomes part of the music through spoken language.
In the interviews, which are anonymous, I ask the question of how people perceive their identity and how it has shaped them through life. The subjects, ranging from subject 1-4 as I call them (instead of using their real names), then automatically go on a journey through their life span to some extent. They are also asked certain key questions like what kind of music they have listened to through time and how music has influenced them through out their life. They get a question about the sound from their childhood or sound image of their mothers.
The interviewed subjects of 4 are a gay woman, a woman living with disability an former asylum seeker that went through human trafficking and a trans woman. Those definitions are only superficial but indicate that all of them are having class struggles of some sort or are in human rights battle but sertenly they all have a story to tell or life experiences that have impacted their identity and self image. They all have in common a traumati childhood with violence or neglect.
Interview with subject 2
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Interview with subject 2
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Interview with subject 3
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Interview with subject
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Track NameArtist Name
00:00 / 01:04
Song of Sadness
I was born on a Bedrock
Song with many verses
Mirror,mirror
The process of the composition of the songs takes place in various way. I use information about favorite songs, memories, and the mother's sound image for example. First I approach the story with lyrics connected to something said in the interview. I become a second narrator or a second self, an extra voice. Usually I use layers of my voice and the actual interviewee’s voice. I look at the structure of the songs referred to as favorite songs and often the chords they are composed in, the sound itself or the instruments used in them. Thus I try to personalize each song to each person but also by cutting out bits of their actual voice which I make selectively a part of the songs. I also improvise and the songs can get a bit abstract by me using my own interpretation of how I see the outlines they give me in the interview in an experiment to grasp their identity. In the gallery set up a bit referring to a photo boot as well as the studio the interviews are recorded in, guests have a chance to sit and contemplate on what is identity and perhaps about your own identity. How would you own theme song sound like if you would have an audible portrait of it?
Small Title
Portrette subject 1
About
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