Schizophonic states: the ventriloquial voice in British artists’ film and video of the 1970s and 1980s

Presented as part of a track on 'Sound and Voice’, this 15 minute paper explored very new research and ideas about the tropes surrounding the ‘disembodied voice’ in feminist notions of ‘hidden’ histories. Drawing upon recent post-doc research into the intersections between experimental sound/music and artists’ moving image in London at this time, the presentation explored the archival dynamics of the recorded voice (Schneider, 2001) in relation to its ventriloquial (Connor, 2000) ability to both detach and reconnect to/with other subjects/objects. Taking a case study starting point, in the form of the work of the Feminist Improvising Group (FIG), it considered recorded utterance via exploration of writings by Steven Connor (2000) and Mladen Dolar (2006) as a way of framing re-examination of queer, feminist and activist approaches to history writing and making, to address intersectional themes and the antiphonal dynamics of the recorded voice. This work connects to a wider research interest, in how history is translated by the mediums – whether written or technological – through which artworks reach us today (Hayles, 2000).