Research Catalogue

At this time of exception, in these extra-ordinary times there seems to be no limit to the limit: Once an extreme, excessive and acute experience, the limit has become an all-inclusive, continuous condition that coincides with a lack of language and other forms of expression and connection. Aiming to collaboratively inhabit and investigate this border experience, the objective of this project is to create contemporary vocabularies and related contextualizations of/for/at the limit. In order to do so, the project’s design for 36 months will develop 3 arts-based research programs exploring 3 select limit-experiences: The Unknown, The Beyond, The Abyss. Each of the interrelated programs includes a score of 5 formats: banquet, symposium, exhibition, podcast and performance collaborations with Saint Genet, Tianzhuo Chen and Marina Abramović.

Situated in the vast space between rigidly notated music and the realm of open improvisation, this research—embodied through a large ensemble for which I have written and conducted music—navigates the intersection of these two worlds in search of a sweet spot between fixed composition and creative spontaneity. Rather than treating the score as a static framework, the composition is approached as a living, evolving entity, where performers, conductor, and technology collaboratively shape the music in real-time. Throughout rehearsals and performances, musicians make interpretive choices, respond to cues from the conductor and their peers, and engage with interactive electronic elements, fostering an ongoing, dynamic dialogue. This process illuminates how variables such as individual interpretation, conductor influence, and rehearsal time can open new avenues for expression, allowing the written score to transcend its traditional boundaries. By embracing this fluidity and exchange, embodied through the term Comprovisation, the composition is continuously transformed, deepening the connection between musicians and the work, and unlocking new possibilities for artistic expression. Through some of my musical pieces as examples we will analyze how this experimental creative process was shaped.

Art activism is powerful. Also known as activist art, protest art, visual activism, artivism and creative activism, it changes lives, situations and is and has been a powerful weapon across a whole spectrum of struggles for justice. Teresa Sanz & Beatriz Rodriguez-Labajos(2021) relay that art activism has the unique ability to bring cohesion and diverse peoples together and it can, as Zeynep Tufekci notes, change the participants (2017). As Steve Duncombe & Steve Lambert (2021) posit, traditional protesting such as marches or squats are no longer as important as they once were. As a result of my own lived experience in activist activities, I very much agree with Andrew Boyd & Dave Oswald Mitchell (2012) that the reason people use art activism is that it works, by enriching and improving protest. In the past, when I lived in a metropolis and was not a parent, I used to be an activist. Now I no longer have immediate access to international headquarters at which to protest and I have to be concerned with being arrested, I am hindered from protesting. This project is an attempt to increase inclusion and widen access to art activism. By devising methods which include at least one of the following: that do not require on-site participation, that can take place outside the public gaze, that reduce the risk of arrest, that open up protest sites that are not “big targets”, that include remote locations, that involve irregular timing, my thesis aims to increase inclusion and widen access to art activism to those who are underserved by more mainstream methods of conducting art activism. Textiles have unique properties that enable them to engage in subterfuge and speak loudly through care and thought(Bryan-Wilson, 2017). They have strong connotations of domesticity, the body and comfort that can be subverted within art activism to reference lack of this domestic warmth and protection(O’Neill, 2022). Being a slow form of art-making, they show care and thought, attention in the making, so that the messaging is reinforced through this intentionality in slow making.

This essay examines drawing as a consciously guided practice for fostering creative problem‐solving and idea generation. At its center lies the Sketch&Draw method, with its core principle of the “fluttering line.” Drawing on Stephen R. Covey’s (1989) concept of the space between stimulus and response, Mihály Csikszentmihályi’s (1990) flow theory, and Maurice Merleau‐Ponty’s (1945) notion of embodiment, it develops—via the Sketch&Draw method—the central principle of the “fluttering line.” Through workshop analyses and practice sketches from sketchanddraw.com, it is evident how the visual noise of the fluttering line opens a mental space in which spontaneous impulses and effortless presence both set the creative process in motion and give it structure. Participant reports illustrate how these uncontrolled networks of strokes are later experienced as “whispered impulses” that support the flow state. Finally, the essay discusses potentials, fields of application, and methodological limits in artistic, technical, and academic contexts, and outlines proposals for further empirical and interdisciplinary research.

This research explores the influence of bel canto, a distinguished Italian vocal style, on 19th-century guitar compositions, with a particular focus on the works of Luigi Legnani. Through detailed analysis, the study identifies key bel canto characteristics, such as expressive phrasing, melodic ornamentation, and dynamic contrasts, as integral elements in Legnani's guitar music. These findings highlight Legnani's skill in adapting the vocal nuances of bel canto to instrumental performance, creating a bridge between vocal and instrumental traditions. The research enhances the understanding of cross-genre influences in 19th-century music and showcases the artistic versatility of composers like Legnani. To present these findings, the format will include recorded video demonstrations, where specific characteristics of bel canto will be illustrated through selected musical excerpts. These videos will provide a visual and auditory exploration of Legnani’s compositions, allowing audiences to observe the practical application of the research insights. The combination of spoken analysis and video demonstrations offers an engaging and comprehensive understanding of the influence of bel canto on Legnani's works, enriching the overall appreciation of this unique musical intersection.

(English below) Eiras kiosk er ein serie med mindre konsertar, lydinstallasjonar og hendingar som blir annonsert kort tid i forvegen og dukkar opp på stadig ulike stader. Kioskserien er utvikla av Eira Bjørnstad Foss og utgjør ein viktig del av det pågåande kunstnarlege forskingsprosjektet "Performer-Curator" ved NTNU, Institutt for musikk. Eiras kiosk: Skattejakt-edition blei spesiallaga til NTNU Artistic Research Week 2024. Saman med publikum utforska kiosken ulike krinkelkrokar i kulturhuset Olavshallen. Skattejakta tok utgangspunkt i, og er nesten ei realisering av, verket "Ear Piece" av den amerikanske komponisten og utøvaren Pauline Oliveros. Eira’s Kiosk is a series of small concerts, sound installations, and events that are announced shortly before they happen, and pop up in various locations. The kiosk series is developed by Eira Bjørnstad Foss, and forms an important part of the ongoing artistic research project, "Performer-Curator," at NTNU, Department of Music. Eira’s Kiosk: Treasure Hunt Edition was specially created for NTNU Artistic Research Week 2024. Together with the audience, the kiosk explored possibilities for experiences in various nooks and crannies of the cultural venue Olavshallen. The Treasure Hunt was based on, and is almost a realization of, the piece "Ear Piece" by the American composer and performer Pauline Oliveros.