Monday, May 05, 2008

Reykjavik: Islamic call to prayer

A sound sculpture by art student Thórarinn Jónsson in the form of a recording of Islamic prayers will sound from the balcony of the Iceland Academy of the Arts in Reykjavík for the next few days.


According to Jónsson, the main motive behind his work is to provide a counterbalance to the negative image of Islam in the Western world, Morgunbladid reports.


"The calls of prayer in the Middle East are sung in a very beautiful and lyrical way," Jónsson said. The recording will be played five times a day for one week (beginning last week) for about one minute at a time.


Jónsson has studied at the Iceland Academy of the Arts since February. He was suspended from the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD) in December after planting a fake bomb—an art project—in the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM).


Source: Iceland Review (English)