LABOUR – Colin Hacklander & Farahnaz Hatam

Biography

LABOUR is a Berlin-based duo formed by Colin Hacklander and Farahnaz Hatam, creating sound-driven works. Collaborating since 2013, they officially founded LABOUR in 2018. Their practice extends into theatre, performance, video and fashion, and they host a monthly radio show on NTS. Long-term residents of the Callie’s sound studio in Berlin, which they helped develop from its inception in 2018, they continue to explore new sonic territories.

Colin Hacklander is a composer and percussionist with a focus on post-tonal theory and electronic music. Farahnaz Hatam is a sound artist, composer and DJ with a background in molecular biology, working primarily with SuperCollider, a digital sound synthesis programming environment. The work of LABOUR has been presented at major international venues and institutions, including Martin Gropius Bau, Kraftwerk, Julia Stoschek Foundation and Berghain in Berlin; Donaueschinger Musiktage; the Sharjah Biennial; Art Basel; the Grand Théâtre National de Dakar and the EMΣT National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens.

Their music is released on Kuboraum Editions, Honest Jon’s, and their own label, studio LABOUR. In 2022, they curated the festival X100 in collaboration with Berlin Atonal, celebrating the enduring legacy of Iannis Xenakis. Their essay The Continuing Legacy of Xenakis Today was published in the 2023 monograph dedicated to Xenakis by EMΣT. As mentors at the dieDAS Design Akademie Saaleck, they have taught sound practices in relation to architecture. They are also currently developing a project in Dakar, Senegal, which engages with the Sabar drum tradition, emphasising intangible cultural heritage and fostering musical exchange between electronic music and traditional percussion.