In 1985 noted Norwegian artist Mikkel McAlinden exhibited a series of photographs at Cafe Vära, Oslo, Norway. The series consisted of eight, life size black and white photographic images of Kendo Masters, printed on a transparent material and mounted on the windows of the café.

For later exhibitions, the Kendo Masters series has been presented as a photographic installation, printed on large, ceiling suspended glass panes, with the idea of having the printing surfaces appear as transparent as possible, enhancing the believability of the illusion.

In the photograph Kendo Glass (1985) (iII 3) we see a Kendo Master apparently in the process of breaking through the printed glass surface, attacking it with his sword. Explosive, dynamic and with a strong, physical presence, the Kendo Masters seem almost like they are breaking through the glass, confronting the viewer, the glass exploding, radiating outwards, frozen in time. Having the photographs printed on glass helps underline and enforce the glass breaking act of the Kendo Master.

In his images of the Kendo Masters, McAlinden examines, in addition to the formal and compository aspects of the photograph, how far it’s possible to stretch the limit of its believability. Facing these photographs it seems clear that the artist’s intent is to confront the viewer, presenting an illusion of reality. The believability of the photographs, and the limits of the perception of reality, is examined through the transparent printing surface, helping emphasize the illusion that the Kendo Master is breaking through the image.

For this exhibition, composer Cato Gilmour was invited to compose and produce an original work, including sampled sounds of the Kendo Masters shouting and breaking glass panes (using early digital sampling technology), which was presented on the exhibition’s opening night, or vernissage. Until now this work, titled Shinai To Garasuita (Kendo Sword and Glass Pane), has never been released or heard again in public.

With the blessing and permission of the artist, Mikkel McAlinden, we are thrilled to finally present Shinai To Garasuita in its unedited entirety, remastered by Cato Gilmour, with a photograph from the initial exhibition.

The first four paragraphs were written by Anne Silje Kolseth, as part of her Masters Dissertation (translated here with permission from Norwegian to English by Cato Gilmour).

Kiite Records, 2023