- Location:
- Home
- / Projects
- / Installation
- / Composition with RNZAF 3 Squadron Exercise Blackbird for three-channel video installation
Video Documentation:
Composition with RNZAF 3 squadron Exercise Blackbird for three-channel video installation from Alex Monteith on Vimeo.
Alex Monteith, 3 Channel video-artwork, 17 mins, 3 channels audio, 2010
Excerpt showing three channels inserted into one HD panel for preview purposes only.
3 Royal New Zealand Air Force Bell UH-1 Iroquois perform a choreographed 3-ship flight during their alpine training Exercise Blackbird in July 2010. The formation of helicopters takes off at Dip Flat RNZAF base and reaches the Leese valley.
Frame no 05. Pilots; Jane & Reichardt, crewman; SGT Dave Tauai
Frame no 14. Pilots; FLTLT Wilson & FLTLT Netzler, crewmen; Tahi-Martin & Woodley
Frame no 01. Pilots; SQDNLDR Oliver Bint & SLT Melville, crewman; Walters
Composition with RNZAF 3 squadron Exercise Blackbird for three-channel video installation from Alex Monteith on Vimeo.
This excerpt is recorded from the 1st of the three Iroquoi flying in formation in the collaboratively generated (Alex Monteith and RNZAF SQNLDR Oliver Bint) performance with three RNZAF helicopters, each with rear-ward facing onboard cameras.
Context and Method
The three-ship section of flying which comprises this performance-and video artwork is a 25 minute choreographed flight inserted into the normal training and Alpine Search and Rescue practices of the RNZAF during excercise Blackbird 2010. After the three-ship section (and complete artwork) was finished (after the touch-and-go and 3-ship break) each frame (helicopter) moved to a different valley and complete its normal session of pilot training. This excerpt is provided for preview purposes only.
3min excerpt of the 18 minute performance, 1 channel (the Left-hand-side) of the 3-channel video installation. Alex Monteith, 2010.
Composition with RNZAF 3 Squadron Exercise Blackbird for three-channel video installation
Year: 2010
Medium: 3-channel video installation with 3-channel audio, 15 meters x 3 meters, 16 mins
Large scale video-performance collaboration b etween Alex Monteith, Royal New Zealand Air Force 3 Squadron & SQDNLDR Oliver Bint at Dip Flat during Ex Blackbird, Aotearoa, NZ, July 2010. .Three simultaneously flying RNZAF Iroquois helicopters perform a collaboratively generated flight routine in the Ex Blackbird locations with onboard recordings for three-channel video installation. Area; Dip Flat, Leese Valley.
The composition of the three-ship flight / action list;
Three helicopters take off and fly the valleys in the line-astern formation with Frame no 14 front, Frame 05 middle and Frame 01 Rear.
The formation flys line astern up the Clarence River Valley and doglegs into the Leese valley and flies into deep into the catchment and performs a sweeping turn. The formation returns to the entrance of the valley and makes a slow approach to a ridge top where each helicopter performs a 360-degree pedal turn simultaneously. This is the key maneouvre of the artwork and was developed specifically to test the scope of both the formation of the flights against the reinstallation method as a video-artwork.
The formation hovers stationary briefly, before the order of helicopters is reversed an Frame 01 leads off, Frame 05 remains in the centre and Frame 14 flays at the rear of the new line astern formation.
Arrangements SQNLDR Kavae Tamariki.
Pilots and Aircrew
Frame no 05. Pilots; Jane & Reichardt, crewman; SGT Dave Tauai
Frame no 14. Pilots; FLTLT Wilson & FLTLT Netzler, crewmen; Tahi-Martin & Woodley
Frame no 01. Pilots; SQDNLDR Oliver Bint & SLT Melville, crewman; Walters
Cameras
Onboard Cams; Fergus Millner, Neil Stichbury, Alex Monteith
Additional Cams; Fergus Millner & Neil Stichbury
Grip equipment; Harry Harrison (NZL)
Stills; Alex Monteith & Sarah Munro
Premier exhibition
Accelerated Geographies, Alex Monteith, Govett Brewster Art Gallery, Aotearoa NZ, Sept 2010
Project funding (main production); University of Auckland, National Institute of Creative Arts and Industries, Elam School of Fine Arts
Exhibition
Video documentation
Video clip 1.
3-channels presented as a maquette inserted into one HD channel to demo the sync, audio and pix in each of the three channels for the installation. 10 mins excerpt of the 17mins (as vimeo online can only present 10 mins per clip)
Video clip 2.
3min excerpt of the LHS channel of the three channel install. Onboard footage from the front helicopter in the formation, RNZAF 14 (FLTLT Wilson & FLTLT Netzler, crewmen; Tahi-Martin & Woodley).
Exhibition requirements
15m wall space | dark space
3 x Pioneer V8000 DVD players
3 ch David Jones Sync unit
3 x speakers
1 x sub woofer
Amp & EQ