Carsten Nicolai’s most interesting artworks
3 articles
Born on 18 September, 1965 in Chemnitz, Germany, Carsten Nicolai (popularly also known as Alva Noto) is a German visual artist, musician, and sound artist. He belongs to several music groups, including Opto with Thomas Knak; Alphabet with Anne-James Chaton; ANBB with Blixa Bargeld; Cyclo with Ryoji Ikeda; and Diamond Version with Olaf Bender.
In his music and sound art, Nicolai is well known for his extensive infusion of the moiré effect. This printing side effect results when two or several patterns superimpose to create a rippled or wavy texture. He uses air, shadow, light, and line as visual renderings of sound to produce art that gives three-dimensional images to two-dimensional images and improves and challenges the viewer’s perception.
