RÄISÄNEN
Tomi
Slow Violence
(2024)
Cello solo
Conceptual work (dur. 20 min - 20 hours)
Commissioned by Yoi Kawakubo for his video work “Slow Violencello” (2024)
Premiere on October 30, 2024, Yoi Kawakubo's exhibition "Left is Right-The Garden of 4.5 Billion Years and Boiled Frogs", Maruki Gallery, Saitama, Japan
In 'Slow Violence' for violoncello, the performer does not need to be a trained musician. The piece involves executing an exceptionally slow "glissando" with maximum bow pressure. This technique produces a series of alternating scratchy sounds with a random rhythm. A performance of this work can last anywhere from 20 minutes to 20 hours. TR, 2025
• • •
“Slow Violencello” (2024), was filmed primarily in Rokkasho Village, Aomori Prefecture, and features the artist playing the cello in a forest, shot on 16mm film. This work draws inspiration from the concept of “Slow Violence”—the idea of a subtle yet inexorable violence that progresses unnoticed and cannot be easily addressed—often associated with environmental issues, forming the central theme of the exhibition. (Maruki Gallery, 2024)