JACOB KIRKEGAARD

Testimonium

Testimonium is an ongoing sound and video work composed from recordings captured at waste, recycling, and wastewater treatment facilities in Denmark and Latvia, as well as at one of the world’s largest landfills—the Dandora dumpsite in Nairobi, Kenya.

Equipped with vibration sensors embedded in endless mounds of organic waste, hydrophones submerged in wastewater and polluted rivers, and microphones tuned to the clatter of metal, glass, and plastic sorted by hand or machine, Testimonium listens deep beneath the surface stench of discarded matter. It probes the material’s physical essence and traces its industrially choreographed afterlife.

What emerges is a sonically rich, poignant tribute to the detritus of modern civilization—a haunting testimonium for what is left behind, and then reclaimed.

This project is created in coorporation with the United Nations Human Settlement Programme / UN-HABITAT in Nairobi, Kenya. The collaboration continued throughout 2023 developing new sound works and interviews for WASTE WISE CITIES creating awareness of plastic waste.

Testimonium, 26 min. 8-channel sound, and audiovisual work.

2-channel audio excerpt from TESTIMONIUM

Videos, photos and reviews:

Testimonium excerpt

Portrait of artist Jacob Kirkegaard and the making of TESTIMONIUM
Video created by John Grzinich as part of the exhibition "NOT out of sight, NOT out of mind", Spring 2019

Film about Jacob Kirkegaard and his work on waste. Produced by JJ FILM in collaboration with New Carlsberg Foundation. Year: 2025. Director: Henrik Lundø, producer: Mads Jørgensen, Editor: Henrik Lundø. Duration: 05:35. Language: Danish with English subtitles. Thanks to HOFOR.

Testimonium at Fridman Gallery, New York, US. Reviewed in The Wire by George Grella, 2021

Dandora dumping site and Nairobi River, Kenya, 2018

Field recording with UN-Habitat @ Dandora dumping site, Kenya, 2018

Glass sorting at recycling facility in Denmark, 2019

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