Composition 20

Naama Tsabar creates sculptures, installations, and performances that often transform the exhibition space itself into a musical instrument to be played. With a background as a musician and bartender, Tsabar infuses her work with materials, sounds, and smells taken from nocturnal environments. Tsabar’s sculptural works—for example, a double guitar played by two facing musicians, or a wall that can be played only from the inside—can become sensuously intimate, highlighting the capacity of sound to break down the delineations between people and spaces.

For her performance on the High Line, Tsabar presents the third iteration of Composition 20, inviting a group of 20 musicians to utilize their amps—which are scattered across the park’s pathway—both as a sound-amplifying source and as a pedestal to stand on. For the work, Tsabar commissions three composers to craft unique musical scores, all to be performed simultaneously by different sets of the musicians. As the musicians step up onto their amps, their collective shifting silhouette forms a sculptural composition that complements the accompanying sonic one.

Organized by Cecilia Alemani, Donald R. Mullen, Jr. Director & Chief Curator, and Melanie Kress, High Line Art Associate Curator.