In 1985, Christian Marclay (born 1955) produced a limited number of records (originally fifty) featuring his own compositions. He sold them without covers, printing his intentions on one side of the vinyl. As the record traveled, the scratches and dirt that accrued on the vinyl would fuse with the original recording and produce new scores. The traces underwent material transfiguration, a cyclical process reminiscent of the chance operations that inflect Paik’s Zen for Film. Marclay’s Record becomes entirely subject to the chance events of the circulation process. Through this, the author’s claim to the production of sound is thrown into flux. This project represents Marclay’s overarching interest in the tensions between the ephemeral nature of sound and the physical vehicles that enable them. Marclay explained that the project was “about allowing the medium to come through,” and he sought to create “a record that could change with time.” —CA

Image: Courtesy Paula Cooper Gallery, New York. © Christian Marclay.