Klangraum Nebel - Marokko

Soundscape Fog
a project by Kalle Aldis Laar
curated by Serafine Lindemann

in cooperation with
and supported by

pilotraum01 e.V
Peter Trautwein/ aqualonis
WasserStiftung
Stiftung Dar Si Hmad

The CloudFisher array on Mount Boutmezguida is a project of the WaterFoundation / WasserStiftung and the Dar Si Hmad foundation, supported by the BMZ (German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development), the MunichRe foundation, the DVGW (German Association of Gas- and Water providers) and realised by the aqualonis GmbH.

⇒ CloudFisher

Soundscape Fog by Kalle Aldis Laar

In the Anti-Atlas mountains of Morocco the largest Fog-Water terrain worldwide was opened in Oktober 2018. 31 CloudFisher constructions provide 16 Berber villages (about 1.150 people) with drinking water for the first time ever. On peak days, the fog collectors harvest up to 80.000 litres of WHO qualified potable water!

Artist Kalle Aldis Laar was invited to contribute to the project and started to work on a sound installation, inspired by the environment and the special weather conditions.
The construction of a sounding body merging both aesthetically and functionally with the framework of the fog nets was the vision right from the start. The result of the collaboration with reknown industrial designer Peter Trautwein, the Cloud Fisher developer, is a system of fog harps, operated by wind and weather – resulting in an unusual on-site composition: the sound of the fog. This sound work is not only the first of its kind to draw attention to the importance of the fog as a valuable resource in one of the driest places in the world, at Mount Boutmezguida right at the gate to the wetsern Sahara. It should also provide a cultural framework for educational campaigns and public relations locally.

Several strings run parallel to one of the hollow fog masts, holding the net construction. Connected directly to the mast, the wind causes the strings to vibrate, top and bottom bridges (like on any string instrument) transmit their resonance to a resonating hollow body as well as directly to the poles holding the nets. Depending on the weather conditions, a multi-facetted drone-like sound is created, the excited strings resonate in various ever-changing overtones and at different volumes. The fog harp is easy to assemble and requires no maintenance, the materials used are weatherproof and durable.

The permanent installation is also regarded as a contribution to enhance public focus on the already felt impacts of global warming on environments and civilisation alike (after the still ongoing Calling the Glacier project www.callme.vg/Glacier/D/presse/presse_2017_mf.html).

Ongoing global warming, extreme weather conditions, the threat of livelihoods and habitats are undeniable. According the latest reports by the ICCp as well as the World Bank, the numbers of climate refugees will increase dramatically by 2050 as a result of climate change - a fact that concerns us all.

Nebel als Lebensretter / Fog as a life-saver. On the opening of the largest fog-net drinking water worldwide in Morocco.
by Dr. Serafine Lindemann ⇒ pdf