Janet Cardiff, "The Forty Part Motet"

Regarded as Janet Cardiff’s masterpiece, The Forty Part Motet is a reworking of a 400-year-old choral arrangement, with recorded voices piped through 40 speakers. Visitors, freely passing among the speakers, hear individual singers—as well as the overall symphony. When it was exhibited at the Cloisters, the New York Times observed many people were “moved to tears” by this “transcendent” art.

The installation ran from November 14, 2015 to January 18, 2016 at Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture.

This event was provided by SFMOMA and The Fort Mason Center for Arts and Culture.

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