AELIZA’S DEBUT SENSORY INSTALLATION IN RETROSPECT
Photography By Dean George
As I entered the gated door of ForeverGood, crouching in order to ensure I didn’t bang my head, I was handed two things: a wristband and a pair of eyeglasses. Walking through the crowd of people that had already arrived - lateness just meant you weren’t getting in - I pushed aside the Aeliza branded panels to reveal a dark room, with lights that made me feel like I was looking up into a starry night.
Putting on the glasses that reminded me of the circa 2008 3D glasses (you know, the ones with the red and blue lenses?) I was blown away at how I felt as though I had just unlocked a different pocket of the universe, and I was the only one in it.
Heavy bass accompanied with a multitude of colours threw me off but interested me at the same time, it wasn’t what I had expected upon entering, and this was my second time experiencing it.
800+ RSVPs, a plethora of performances and one great night later, it’s an understatement to consider Aeliza’s first event a ‘success’.
We pulled up the day before, not only to ensure we were at the front of the queue to get into a packed-out ForeverGood, but also to chat to Jack and Nosa about their ‘sensory installation’. A normal party would’ve been good enough, sure, but with the application of some Aeliza branded eyeglasses, the experience was taken to a whole new realm. When you’re as calculated as Jack Harper and Nosa Aiworo of Aeliza are, what went down on Saturday night was inevitable.
How do I describe their working relationship? It’s fueled by mining their common ground which is genius. They’re both very precise with what they say and do, interrogating everything, including the questions I ask, with meticulous detail and close care.
Just over a year into their journey, they decided that the time was now for their first installation. For them, this installation wasn’t just about having a great night, it was about changing minds and challenging natural perception.
“Our culture isn't necessarily driven to take its time, people feel like they need to do things there and now and be rushed. I want to change that narrative,” says Jack, explaining how although this installation was 2 days in execution, it was months of planning, thinking, discussion that allowed them to reach this point.
“We’re exploring emotions and ideologies, and we want people to understand why, and feel comfortable within it, hence why we’ve ensured the surroundings are dark, to allow people to really be themselves,” explained Nosa, a perfect example of the synergy within the two man team that is Aeliza. Whilst Jack’s approach comes more from a design perspective, and Nosa’s from a sonic standpoint, their coming together leads to an airtight production, a sensory installation that not only is a memorable experience, but is one that “reconnects you with your sight”.
Hearing the pair speak about their specialisms was nothing short of insightful. When I spoke to Nosa about sound, his eyes lit up, going into his own. There’s no doubt I got the passion that was coming through in his expression: “At the end of the day, sound is everything, without sound, you can’t react, the DJs we’ve picked all have a specific sound, there’s everything for everyone,” the blend of comfort combined with the encouragement to explore something new from a sound perspective was very evident. I doubt there was anybody that knew every single song, but I found myself having moments of connection with complete strangers, even if it was to songs I didn’t know, a massive testament to the DJ curation on the night.
Complemented by Jack’s masterful design, (his bread and butter), he spoke me through the design process...
“This whole concept is about changing perception. As a designer, I can't change the subject, but I can change the way you perceive it. What we’ve done with this space pursues that idea where you go into a space and it's presented in a certain way, there’s a possibility for your perception to be changed [with the glasses], completely taking your psyche into a different place altogether.”
The subtle reinforcement of Aeliza’s brand message is proof of the strength of the collaboration and conversations between Jack and Nosa. Simple as it may seem, the brand message being placed onto a mirror, inverted to mimic the same reflection that Aeliza is in this scenario, speaks to the thorough understanding of who Aeliza are as a brand.