Roberta Lazo Valenzuela

A myriad of flowing stories is carried by the millenary waters that run around our planet every day. These primordial waters have witnessed and participated in major planetary reformations, traveling the globe and permeating countless bodies in the form of meandering rivers, rainfall, sweat, mist or snow. These fluid exchanges keep such streaming stories afloat. 

In White Cycles, the artist and composer Roberta Lazo Valenzuela renders a sonorous tribute to the millennial spirit of water, praising the stories contained in its tides. By observing the Mühlbach’s natural white noise, resonant qualities and potential interpreters, Roberta designed three sets of ceramic musical objects in collaboration with a local ceramist. These objects appeal to the symbol of infinity and cyclic motion by taking the circle as a primary form. Its raw colour highlights the pieces within the darker landscape, complementing the scene with poetic meaning. 

The compositions intricately weave together stories, memories and landscapes, creating diverse soundscapes and atmospheres. An ensemble of floating drums, chimes and singing sculptures serenade the stream’s water through their active performance and interact with the motion of the current, flora, fauna and the weather. 

As visitors stroll along the Mühlbach amidst percussion, soft tinkles and chants, they become part of this immersive experience.

Roberta Lazo Valenzuela (1991, Santiago) is a Chilean composer, singer and visual artist based in Austria. After completing her bachelor's degree in Composition, she migrated to Europe, where she first lived in Germany and later in Austria. In 2018 she completed a master programme in Composition in Linz and in 2021 she finished another Master in TransArts at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna and also completed an ERASMUS semester at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts. Her work encompasses a variety of media including music, sound art, installation, and video, among others. The themes of her pieces often deal with portraying and highlighting the intricacies of daily life, while creating a dialogue between the visual and the musical. Her music and visual work have been performed, exhibited and/or released in Austria, Germany, Norway, Romania, Latvia, Croatia, Chile, Switzerland, Spain and Ireland.