Commissioned by Castle Howard
Designed for the award-winning ‘Christmas in Narnia’ event, a themed trail of interior room installations in Castle Howard inspired by the timeless classic by C.S. Lewis.

With each room telling a different part of the narrative, the rooms had to reflect the characters from the story, the atmosphere, and the point in the tale that had been reached.
The work of C.S. Lewis’ was researched and combined with history research into the wartime period the story is set in. A wide combination of effects and novel speaker placements aided the journey from 1940s Britain to a frozen Narnia and further to the story’s celebratory finale. Each of the eleven separate spaces had audio that was distinct and unique, combining soundscaping, music composition and effects that could integrate with the visual design of each room.

Mermaids' Song

Mermaids' Song (excerpt)

Commissioned by the Napa Lighted Art Festival
Supported by Prof. Giles Gasper and the History Department (Medieval) at Durham University

Inspired by the acknowledged connection of the Presbyterian church with the early Christianity of Scotland and the north east of England, the Presbyterian Church of Napa was transformed with audio and imagery into a day on the medieval island of Iona.
Following the passage of the sun from its rising through the liturgical hours of the monastery, the imagery and sound journeyed around the island, from east coast to the central open plains of the island to the western side facing onto the wilds of the Atlantic and the setting sun. 
The audio, complete with a special instrumental arrangement of medieval chant, formed a rich picture of the island, recreating it for the U.S. audience through a multichannel sound design around them, placing them onto the island itself.

First Light

First Light (Night Seals - excerpt)

Commissioned by the e-Luminate Festival, Cambridge, with the support of the AHRC research project, ORDERED UNIVERSE, led by Prof. Giles Gasper (Durham University) and Dr Hannah Smithson (University of Oxford)

Exhibited at the e-Luminate Festival (Cambridge, UK), Berlin Festival of Lights (Germany), Night of Heritage Light (Oxford, UK)

To develop this project, we partnered with academics from IMEMS at Durham University, alongside leading physicists and astronomers from the Department of Computational Cosmology.  Using images and ideas of the workings of the physical and metaphysical cosmos, the artwork juxtaposes medieval theories with the latest science on the origins of the universe.
The sound features instrumental arrangements drawn on the visual elements associated with angels in early manuscripts from the medieval period and combines them with modern music production. It also includes a special music arrangement of the responsory, ’O vos angeli’ composed by the 12th century German abbess, Hildegard von Bingen and other chant arrangements.

https://vimeo.com/1098729334
https://youtu.be/j8svvAEHX_M?si=NfQwhXnRdAWLqj7z

Spiritus: Light and Darkness

Spiritus: Light and Darkness (The Black Hole - excerpt)

Commissioned by Magnetic Events and Redcar & Cleveland Council
Created for the Odin’s Glow art event.
It has also exhibited at the Illuminating York Festival and the ‘Languages, Myths and Finds’ conference at the University of Nottingham.

This large scale sound installation was a deeply evocative celebration of the Viking and Anglo-Saxon culture, heritage and landscape of the North East of England.
Created as a surround sound work to be experienced after dark, it was situated in an open field in the rural landscape of Cleveland, from a vantage point where the peak of Roseberry Topping would be visible. 
Drawing on a blend of Viking and Anglo-Saxon poetry, riddles and purpose built instruments such as a 10th century reproduction lyre and handmade bone flutes, it sought to give voice to the memories of the land and the people that once lived there. All voices were members of the public who volunteered to be recorded. Built to form an evocative tapestry of seven different languages, (modern Danish, Norwegian and Swedish, alongside the original medieval languages) it sought to reflect linguistic heritage as well as the rich culture of the past and the scale of the autumn landscape.

“The village was filled for several nights with runes, battle-ready warriors, the sounds of hearth-fires and ravens and Old Norse poetry. Karen Monid’s sound piece, Contours, sought particularly to unite the Old Norse with Old and Modern English, and to lead people into a more nuanced understanding of the culture of Norse settlers – by first enticing them in with the romantic strangeness of the stereotype.” - Jo Shortt Butler, 'The Vikings In Cleveland'

Contours

Contours (The Seer - excerpt)

Contours ("The Land Is Holy" - excerpt)

Commissioned by the Cheriton Light Festival.
Supported by the AHRC research project ‘Into The Forest’, led by Dr. Eleanor Barraclough

‘Animal’ was inspired by Dr Eleanor Barraclough’s work on the forest themes and the podcasts that she had produced from that research. Karen conceived 'Animal' as an experimental work in using psychoacoustics in a public urban environment to awaken human instinct learnt over millenia.
Beginning in the modern day, the piece leads the viewer back to the Mesolithic landscape at the end of the last ice age. Extensive research was undertaken to re-create the forest sounds of that time through an immersive multichannel soundscape. A thoughtful moment occurs when the audience find themselves sheltering from the ‘rain’ in a cave, complete with paintings from yet another, much earlier era than the Mesolithic. The human presence in the landscape is the audience themselves, surrounded by the natural sounds and suggestive imagery of a world now lost to us.

“We found ourselves deep in the prehistoric forest edge, exploring the primal conditions from which storytelling emerges. what does a human brain do when given the raw materials of sound and silence, light and darkness, myth and memory? The audience reaction to the final sequence was like nothing I’d experienced.
Karen understands sound not only as atmosphere, but as a means to hold an audience in a moment, to guide their emotional and imaginative experience, and enhance their understanding.” - Eleanor Barraclough

Animal

Animal (Paleolithic Cave Painting - excerpt)

Animal (Mesolithic Forest - excerpt)

Commissioned by English Heritage for their property, Belsay Hall
Co-created with Belle Mellor, Myles McCloud and Ross Ashton (The Projection Studio)

This history-based animation was created to tell the story of the history of Belsay Hall.
It does this through a specially developed character, the Wild Man, which is an emblem drawn from the Hall’s history and the history of the Middleton family, who are most associated with it.

The multichannel audio was created in surround sound. The sound design was created to integrate with the unique structure and features that comprise the medieval kitchen space it is located in, and with the mapped architectural projection for the animation. 
The script and storyboard was developed between Karen Monid, Belle Mellor, the animator and Myles McCloud, who wrote the script and voiced the Wild Man, under Karen Monid’s direction. The projection design and technical director was Ross Ashton, under The Projection Studio.

VIDEO CLIP HERE:
https://vimeo.com/1108705711

“My 2 year old went to see this today with her grandparents and absolutely loved it, she can't stop talking about it!” -Instagram
“It’s amazing! We had loads of compliments about it” - Instagram
“This was absolutely amazing, our kids were completely in love with it” - Instagram

The Wild Man of Belsay

The Wild Man of Belsay (excerpt)

Commissioned by the AHRC research project, INTO THE FOREST, led by Dr Eleanor Barraclough. 
Created for Light Up Trails and exhibited at Sir Harold Hillier Gardens

This unique project was the result of a creative partnership with the historian, author and BBC presenter, Dr Eleanor Barraclough. 
'Song Of The Pine' integrated the cycle of forest ecology with the fireside storytelling traditions of the Vikings and Anglo Saxons, as seen through the life cycle of a pine tree, the original Christmas tree.
Atmospheric and emotional, the piece drew on the audience’s own ancient and instinctive response to the primeval supremacy of ice and fire and aimed to reconnect them to the fullness of forest life.
Using a combination of specially written poetry by Karen, the piece fused modern technology in the form of specially designed foliage projection and a 5.1 surround sound system with traditional storytelling, creating a compelling work suitable for an all age 21st century audience.

Video extract here:
https://youtu.be/uKziRcCkhAU?si=pjD2sGoSb3eee31D

‘Song Of The Pine’ was seen by 70,000 people and the piece was very well received, and was voted the ‘Audience’s Favourite’ by the visitors on the trail that year.

“Karen had clearly done extensive research into my work and used that foundation to craft a resonant, immersive experience. She composed a remarkable sound design that felt both ancient and vividly modern. Being recorded and directed by her as a narrator felt completely natural.” - Dr. Eleanor Barraclough

Song Of The Pine

Song Of The Pine ("It Sang" - excerpt)

Song Of The Pine (Gift Bringing/'The Angel Gabriel' - excerpt)

Karen Monid is a UK sound artist and projection specialist who has created award-winning sound art pieces and son et lumière works worldwide. Her work is regularly presented at arts festivals and large scale public events.

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