Emmanuel Van der Auwera: White Noise 2018
White Noise (2018) is a multimedia installation consisting of a 46-inch LCD screen, a 48-minute video loop, and a tripod holding a circular sheet of Plexiglas. The screen has been manipulated by the artist so that the moving images become invisible to the human eye.
At first glance, the screen appears blank and white. However, when viewers look through the Plexiglas positioned in front of the screen, the hidden film becomes visible. The footage is based on classified material leaked to the public and depicts a helicopter attack involving civilian casualties in Baghdad.
White Noise is part of Emmanuel Van der Auwera’s VideoSculptures series, which explores media aesthetics, perception, and the construction of reality. The video material originates from footage released by Chelsea Manning through WikiLeaks documenting airstrikes in Baghdad.
The work raises questions about passive spectatorship and active observation, as well as the relationship between information, technology, war, distance, and media representation.
About Emmanuel Van der Auwera
Emmanuel Van der Auwera (born 1982 in Belgium) lives and works in Brussels. Through filmmaking, video sculpture, theater, printmaking, and other media, his artistic practice examines how contemporary images influence public perception and visual culture.
Van der Auwera investigates how media images are produced, distributed, and interpreted. By manipulating technologies and image systems, he explores the relationship between visibility, truth, and spectatorship, while encouraging viewers to critically reflect on their own engagement with images.