Bigloo 2005-2020
The Bucket and the Tub
Above: Sean Connaughty and Matt Zaun with Bigloo version 1 at Medicine Lake 2005 with Art Shanty Projects
Bigloo version 1, a snow structure conceived, designed, and built by Sean Connaughty and Matt Zaun on Medicine Lake, Plymouth, MN, during the winter of 2005/6 as part of the Art Shanty Projects, served as a unique environment for music creation and recording. Utilizing snow's abundant, recyclable, and acoustically interesting properties, the Bigloo was powered by a deep-cycle marine battery, driving a car amp and marine speakers. Equipped with recording devices,microphones, and a mixer, the structure facilitated numerous recording sessions, culminating in a CD release accompanied by a Sean Connaughty photogravure print and package design by Matt Zaun.
photo by Gene Pittman (WAC)
Above: Bigloo version 21 debuted at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN, in 2011. The iconic snow structure hosted performances by Machine Project artists, Vortex Navigation Company, Comets ov Cupid, Elaine Evans, and The Eclectic Ensemble. A photograph of the Bigloo by Gene Pittman (WAC) became the Walker Art Center's holiday postcard that year.
Above: During the second year of the Art Shanty Project residency, faced with insufficient snow, Sean and Matt developed the Bigloo thermal shield, a precursor to the protective covering for Bigloo version 6. Bigloo version 5 itself was constructed with a PVC armature and high-tech reflective insulation. Inside Bigloo version 6, performances featuring video projections on ice took place.
Above: Bigloo versions 8, 10, and 11 were constructed in the backyard in the Seward neighborhood, Minneapolis, MN USA during the winter of 2007/08. As a tribute to Matt Zaun, the Bigloo tradition continued with a community of friends. These versions coexisted with Bigloo v9 in Finland, Minnesota, that winter. Incorporating new innovations, versions 8, 10, and 11 featured isolated recording chambers equipped with microphones and speakers. This setup enabled musicians to collaborate in separate spaces while capturing improvised recordings.
Above: Bigloo version 9 was realized in the winter of 2008, honoring Matt Zaun's vision. A group of friends gathered in remote Finland, Minnesota, near Lake Superior to construct this ambitious project. Rising 16 feet tall, it was the largest Bigloo to date, built on an old quarry site within the Sawtooth Mountain range.
Above: Bigloo version 12. In 2009, we constructed a Bigloo atop a craggy peak near Jay Cooke State Park in Fond du Lac, Minnesota. Ideal building conditions on the first day allowed us to rapidly complete the structure before temperatures dropped. Subsequent music sessions featured musicians collaborating with pre-recorded drumming tracks by Matt Zaun to create new compositions.
Above: Bigloo versions 13, 14, and 15 were constructed in the Seward neighborhood of Minneapolis in 2009. Designed as separate recording chambers, these Bigloos facilitated collaborative musical projects. With an enhanced recording system,local musicians were invited to participate. Notable contributions include an album by Best Friends Forever, a saxophone composition by Kristen Froebel, and recordings from Elaine Evans and the Brass Messengers.
Above: Bigloo version 19 was an egg-shaped structure built in the front yard of a Standish neighborhood home in South Minneapolis. Its unique shape presented a construction challenge. The Bigloo was illuminated at night, creating a striking neighborhood display.
Above: Bigloo versions 20+ were created in 2010 near Jay Cooke State Park in Fond du Lac. A Bigloo village was constructed, featuring a wearable Bigloo and a unique dog-sized version.
Above: Bigloo version 21 debuted at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN, in 2011. It hosted performances by Machine Project, Vortex Navigation Company, Comets ov Cupid, Elaine Evans, and The Eclectic Ensemble. A photo of the Bigloo became the Walker Art Center's iconic holiday postcard.
photo by Gene Pittman (WAC)
The Music of Bigloo 2005-2011
The Music of Bigloo
Beginning in the winter of 2005/2006, collaborators Matt Zaun and Sean Connaughty began designing and constructing snow shelters or igloos for recording and playing back music at the Art Shanty Projects. They developed mobile, cold-weather recording systems using marine batteries for power and creating custom-designed microphones and speakers.
The Bigloos took traditional Inuit snow structures as inspiration, utilizing spiral construction and technologies such as the cold sink and other ventilation and heating techniques. The building process had to be adapted to work in the conditions of Minnesota, which lacks the consistent snowpack typically utilized by Inuit peoples in arctic regions to quarry snow bricks. Snow bricks had to be formed differently, and depending on the temperature, often brick-making had to be accomplished by adding lake water drawn from a hole drilled in the ice in the center of the structure. These factors often resulted in a different shape, which was typically more conical and much larger than a traditional igloo, which is more dome-shaped. These shelters were eventually dubbed Bigloos for their large size. The snow structures offered unique acoustics, which typically provided great audio sensitivity, causing quieter sounds to have a greater presence. In our research, we investigated anechoic chambers, which have a similar effect on sounds. In extremely cold temperatures, the Bigloo would resonate. Zaun and Connaughty at times employed a hydrophone (underwater microphone) placed in the water beneath the igloo during recordings and incorporating amplification of live sounds recorded underwater.
Sean Connaughty and Matt Zaun were musical and artistic collaborators at the time who played with a community of musicians and friends from their home base in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, as well as from nearby Duluth and Fargo.This community of friends rallied around the project and labored tremendously to help build the Bigloos and to create and record music within them. A CD was created and released by Zaun and Connaughty in 2006.
On November 4, 2007, Matt Zaun unexpectedly passed away at the young age of 32 from a previously unknown heart condition. This loss was a devastating blow to the community, with Matt having been a central and connecting figure in so many lives. His legacy was celebrated by a comprehensive exhibition of his works at the Casket Arts building in Northeast Minneapolis. And in the winter of 2008, friends gathered in a remote cabin near Finland, MN, USA, in the northern part of the state to build Bigloo version 9 in a continuation of the legacy Matt and Sean started. Many innovations and numerous subsequent versions were created.
Hundreds of recordings have been made in the more than twenty versions of Bigloo that were made. Below are some selected videos that include the music of the many artists who performed in the various versions, including sessions at the renowned Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Bigloo
Limited edition audio CD 2006, includes 14 audio tracks, recorded in Bigloo version 1 and includes a Sean Connaughty photogravure print on Rives BFK paper. Design by Matt Zaun.
Above: Performance on January 28, 2011, of Comets Ov Cupid with Sean Connaughty at the Walker Art Center in Bigloo v21. Those who helped build Bigloo v21 included: Dan Hill, Carol Nordstrom, Jim Proctor, David Pitman, Kristen Murray, WACTAC'ers: Mariel, Luke, and Will. California based collective Machine Project commissioned the Bigloo at WAC. Machine Project artists: Chris Kallmeyer, Emily Lacy and _____
Above: in this video you can hear Brianne Smith of Best Friends Forever play the german anthem on an accordion. The audio is from inside the Bigloo in the Seward neighborhood Minneapolis backyard on February 28th, 2009. Three interconnected bigloos equipped with microphones and speakers, allowing players in separate igloos to play music together. Recorded in Bigloo 13, 14 and 15. Other musicians: David Pitman, Sean Connaughty, Peter Johnson, Heidi Prevenost, neighbor Matt, bell and Katie. building help from Peter Fetsch, Craig, Elaine Evans, August.
Above: Bigloo versions 13, 14, and 15. February 2009. Video and music were recorded inside the Bigloos using a multi-chambered recording technique. Musicians played along with a previously recorded track by Matt Zaun. Sean digitized Matt's cassette tapes and played them through speakers while Scott Puhl, Sean Connaughty, Adam Backstrom, and Bryce Kastning improvised. Recording took place in the South Minneapolis backyard. Night shots. Building assistance from Peter Fetsch, Craig, Elaine Evans, and August.
Above: left to right, Matt Zaun 2006 and Sean Connaughty 2009. “The Bucket and the Tub, henceforth now shall roam, together forever in confidence, the Bucket and the Tub!”
Above: Minneapolis band Best Friends Forever recorded their cassette release, Bigloo Sessions, inside Bigloo versions 13, 14,and 15 on March 8th, 2009. Musicians: Briana Smith, Jessica Seamans, and Joe Rand. Get your copy of BFF’s Bigloo Sessions here: http://say-and-stay-said.com/
Builders Peter Fetsch, Craig, Elaine Evans, and August for their help building the Bigloos in Minneapolis backyard (Seward neighborhood).
Above: singing by Yana Frank and Tony Randazzo in Bigloo 8,10 and 11, 2008 Seward neighborhood, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Above: Machine Project artist Emily Lacy in Bigloo v21 2011 at Walker Art Center