noc noc

noc noc is an audiovisual installation that explores the relationship between architecture, sound and collective memory through the history of Colònia Güell. Inspired by the acoustics, materials and symbolic character of Antoni Gaudí’s crypt, the project considers sound as a tool capable of revealing dimensions of architecture that cannot be accessed through sight alone.

The installation is composed of a series of kinetic hand sculptures derived from the deconstruction of the maneki-neko, the familiar Japanese beckoning cat. Removed from its original context and transformed into a repetitive mechanical gesture, the object becomes a symbol of industrialisation, consumerism and the monotony of automated production.

The sculptures’ white finish carries an additional symbolic meaning, referencing ideas of purity, religion and extremity. Their continuous movement echoes the repetitive labour that shaped the industrial history of Colònia Güell, while also reflecting forms of mechanical repetition that remain present in contemporary society.

The experience is accompanied by a sound performance created with the kinetic hand sculptures, which function simultaneously as visual objects and sound-producing instruments. Their simple mechanical sounds are intensified through the use of a pedal steel, a digital delay and an amplifier, creating an immersive soundscape that responds to the architectural qualities of the space.

Through experimentation, movement and sound, noc noc proposes an alternative way of experiencing architecture—one in which the building is not simply observed, but listened to. A concept film was created to support the sound performance and expand its visual and sonic language.

Sound reaches places that sight cannot.