Stellar Frequencies

The music and exhibition project “Stellar Frequencies”, jointly organised by the Goethe-Institut in Armenia and the Armenian NOPA Sound Art Festival, explores the interconnection of space science, politics and planetary thinking and combines artistic positions from the field of sound art. In cooperation with international artists and other German partners, “Stellar Frequencies” investigates how our relationship to the cosmos could transcend extractive and colonial aspirations. The starting point is the former Soviet space centre “Aragats”, located in the Armenian highlands. The research station once served as an international hub for the search for extraterrestrial life but has since been largely abandoned. Six artists/artist collectives will be taking residencies in Armenia to develop site-specific works that explore cosmological legends, as well as the political and ecological dimensions of space exploitation. For example, the artist Vahan Soghomonian is studying Armenian cosmic mythologies, songs and instruments, and is developing a new piece that adopts a critical view of the appropriation of space by humans today. Jan St. Werner is working on an acoustic study of space and time in contrast to the mostly visual narratives of astronomy. Başak Günak (Ah! Kosmos) is combining electronic composition and experimental sound art to create acoustic spaces that visitors can experience through sensory perception.

The works produced during these residencies will form the heart of an international exhibition that will open in autumn 2026 at the Armenian Centre for Contemporary Experimental Art (NPAK) in Yerevan. The Nebra Sky Disc will be shown in Armenia at the same time, presented in combination with selected works of sound art. The exhibition will later be presented at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin and the Arche Nebra in Nebra (Saxony-Anhalt) in spring and summer 2027, respectively. A bilingual publication will document the artistic processes and explore the cultural, astronomical and political significance of both locations, Bjurakan/Orgov in Armenia and Nebra.

The music and exhibition project “Stellar Frequencies” is funded through General Project Funding by the German Federal Cultural Foundation. 

Project manager: Jan-Tage Kühling 
Curators: Varoujan Chetirian, Jan-Tage Kühling 
Artists: Andrius Arutunian, Chto Delat International, Başak Günak, Vardan Harutyunyan, Nelly Ben Hayoun Stepanian, Hover Chor, Jens Klimek, Vahan Soghomonian, Jan St. Werner 

Exhibitions: NPAK Armenien Centre für Experimental Art, Yerevan: autumn 2026; Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin: spring 2027; Arche Nebra, Nebra: summer 2027