James Schidlowsky
Studied in pure & applied sciences, geology and computer science, worked as a software developer for years.
Throughout those years was a passion for music, playing guitar, and photography.
Eventually this led to a multidisciplinary art practice involving sound art, video, collage, digital and electronics, etc.
Worked a few years as a technician at the New Media Lab at OBORO (an artist-run centre),
and is currently a technician supporting the IMCA / Intermedia (Performance, video and electronic arts)
program at Concordia University.
Music / Audio art: composer/performer. Involved in the production of a number of albums,
DVDs and concerts, solo or in a group. Developed and created synthesizers for performances and sound installations.
Hosted and performed on radio broadcasts concerning audio art.
Visual arts: Photography, collage.
Video art: Produced experimental videos, supercuts and stop-motion animations.
Digital art (creative coding): Developed generative programs for text, images and sound,
often destined for web diffusion.
Electronic art: Designed and built custom electronic devices and programmed microcontrollers
for personal projects as well as for other artists including Alexandre St-Onge, Christine Lucy Latimer,
François Alfred Mignault, Lorraine Oades and Marie-Douce St-Jacques.
CV
(All locations Montréal, Québec, Canada, unless otherwise stated.)
Collaborative Exhibitions
- 2022 Le songe d'artisan (with Fortner Anderson, Geneviève Letarte and Alexandre St-Onge),
real time computer generation of poems with sound, presented at the Festival international de musique actuelle de Victoriaville.
- 2018 Le poème perpétuel (with Fortner Anderson), a computer-programmed poetry generator/reader installation,
Centre d'art et de diffusion CLARK.
- 2016 - present The Pinball Supercut (with Mark Loeser), supercut video montage of over 16 hours of
clips featuring pinball machines. Permanent looping projection at the North Star machines à piastres bar (Montréal).
Solo Exhibitions
- 2016 The Sweet32 Speaker Interrupter-Switcher Installation Thing (Ceci n'est pas la haute-fidélité), OBORO gallery.
- 2014 The Sweet32 Speaker Interrupter-Switcher Installation Thing (Ceci n'est pas la haute-fidélité), STABLE.
Publications
Blogs
- 2015 – pinballspotting:,
a blog identifying vintage pinball machines spotted in movies serendipitously.
Residences
- 2001 Avatar, Québec, QC (production of a radiophonic work for the Excavation Sonore series).
Selected Handmade Electronic Projects
- 2018 Kiss-A-Scope, revived a 1970s coin-operated amusement machine, with Arduino-controlled light show and “fortune” dispensing (with Jordan Bowden).
- 2016 Octa Consequencer, an 8-step sound sequencer, with built-in VCO.
- 2014 “Faces” Lightbox, a lightbox based on a pinball backglass with electronically- controlled illumination.
- 2013 Pulse Witch 23, a sound-maker with manually or automatically-controlled parameters.
- 2012 Quad Spacial Percussionizer, a 4-channel version of the Spacial Percussionizer, with parameters controllable by external signals. Custom-made for Alexandre St-Onge.
- 2012 Spacial Percussionizer, a percussive sound-maker with spacialisation in stereo.
- 2011 Spooly J, an unpredictable sound-maker.
- 2011 The Vidiffektor, a video-signal mangler. Two devices were made, one for experimental filmmaker/video artist Christine Lucy Latimer.
- 2010 The Quadratic Cascading Intersidereal Noisificator, a sound-maker.
Selected Audio & Visual Productions
- 2012 If You Got Ringing Ears, Too, radio performance with Janice Kerfoot on CKUT FM.
- 2012 If You Got Pi, radiophonic piece for CKUT FM.
- 2012 If You Got Ringing Ears, solo radio performance on CKUT FM.
- 2010 SheepBuddhaSleep, 70-minute video produced for projection during musical duo
Pecora Pecora's CD launch concert.
- 2007 Time and Space or: The Inexistence of Infinity, radiophonic work for CKUT FM.
- 2007 Through Three Eyes, video (4m46s), later screened during an event organized by Double Negative Collective.
- 2006 Cover photograph for CD Montreal Sound Matter / Montréal matière sonore (Various artists), Pogus.
- 2006 Composed soundtrack for the experimental video One Million Dots (42m53s) by Graham Watson.
- 2004 Composed soundtrack for a short experimental video which was part of a larger work called Lossy by Mark Loeser & Graham Watson.
- 2002 Cover and other photographs for CD The Freest of Radicals (Various artists), No Type.
- 2000 Composed some music for a production by Dummies Theatre.
Selected Discography
- 2021 From the Deck of this Ship (Ian Ferrier, Will Eizlini & Magic Cookie Orchestra), as performer, vinyl LP.
- 2021 Le temps lent (Enfant magique) as performer, cassette & vinyl LP.
- 2018 Sirius-B (Will Eizlini & Nommos Ensemble) as performer, Bandcamp release.
- 2016 Isis and Osiris (Sam Shalabi), as performer, Nashazphone records vinyl LP.
- 2014 Mindlessness (Sam Shalabi), as performer, Los discos enfantasmes cassette.
- 2012 Ringen (2005), VHS reissue, squint press.
- 2008 Heavy Eye of the Sun III, CD-R in duo Heavy Eye of the Sun, digitalis industries.
- 2004 Souterra (In Search of Providence), self-published CD-R & web release.
- 2003 Sang9, various artists compilation CD, DAME.
- 2002 sine fiction vol.III) the shockwave rider, web release on No Type.
- 2002 The Freest of Radicals, No Type compilation CD.
- 1999 Rusted Sequences, self-published CD-R.
Selected Concert Performances
- 2019 in quartet with Alexandre St-Onge, Xarah Dion and Will Eizlini, La Sotterenea
- 2017 solo, Tranzac Club (Toronto, ON) (Mixed Input Festival)
- 2017 in group directed by Will Eizlini, La Sala Rossa (Suoni per il popolo)
- 2015 in group directed by Will Eizlini, Nomad Nation (Nuit blanche, presented by Le Festival du Nouveau Cinéma)
- 2015 in duo (Th3rd Eye Candy), Atelier Silex (Trois-Rivières)
- 2015 in trio with Alexandre St-Onge and Émilie Mouchous, La Passe
- 2014 in duo with Éric Gingras, Le sous-bois (Chicoutimi)
- 2013 with CKUT Circuit Workshop, Brasserie Beaubien (Pop Montreal)
- 2009 in group, Lab.Synthèse
- 2007 solo, Le Cagibi
- 2006 solo, La Sala Rossa (Tentacules)
- 2005 in duo with Olivier Borzeix (as Le Black Noise), Musée juste pour rire (MUTEK)
- 2005 in group Rivers and Mountains, Divan Orange
- 2003 in group Rivers and Mountains, Pasalymany's
- 2003 in duo, La Sala Rossa (SuperMusique)
- 2003 with Alexandre St-Onge, Rad'a (Radio-Canada)
- 2003 in group, Méduse, Québec QC (Machines)
- 2002 in trio with Erick d'Orion & Guillaume Théroux-Rancourt, Salle Multi de Méduse, Québec QC (Machines)
- 2001 in group, Espace3
- 2001 solo, Galerie Fôkus
- 2001 with Magali Babin, Casa del popolo
- 2000 in group, Radio-Canada Studios
- 2000 solo, Casa del popolo
- 2000 solo, Artishow
- 1999 in duo wih Matt Bain, Jailhouse Rock Café
Education
- 1993 Concordia University, Montréal QC, Bachelor of Computer Science
- 1984 Champlain Regional College, St-Lambert QC, D.E.C. In Pure & Applied Science
Art Friends: