The very first issue of mono.kultur is dedicated to German musician and artist Carsten Nicolai aka alva noto. Nicolai is renowned for channelling his interests in science, mathematics and natural phenomena into different outlets, notably highly aesthetic and compelling works of art and installations which have been exhibited at major institutions such as the Guggenheim New York or the documenta X. However, his experiments with frequencies and sound have also resulted in a prolific career as a musician under the moniker of alva noto, while co-founding the acclaimed record label raster-noton dedicated to pioneering new ground in experimental electronic sound.

With mono.kultur, Carsten Nicolai talked about his beginnings during the end of the Communist regime in East Germany, the use of error in his work and how grids and patterns can explain the world.

This issue not only showcases a range of Nicolai’s body of artwork, but also honours the silence of erased interview passages with empty space.

Interview by Andrew Cannon / Artwork by Carsten Nicolai / Design by Kai von Rabenau

“Das Ungewöhnliche [an mono.kultur] ist die Monothematik – und die Ausstattung: Kein Heft soll fotografisch und typografisch wie das nächste aussehen. Selbst das Papier hat einen je eigenen Charakter.”
— Der Tagesspiegel

“In order to do justice to its subjects, it features just the one interview per issue. That said, mono.kultur isn’t text-heavy but with a strong emphasis on visual content.”
— The Wire

“Tatsächlich ist mono.kultur das genaue Gegenteil von Oberflächlichkeiten, [sondern] akademisch wi-derspenstig, keine Komplexität fürchtend, detailgetreu auf der Suche nach dem künstlerischen Ich. Der Mut zum Unterschied wird auch in der Gestaltung deutlich.”
— TAZ

“This baby’s a new interview format from Berlin, focussing on only ONE creative person per issue. Which also means: No cheesy Boygroups, no Nazi-Aufmärsche or gay Cricket teams. Yeah. The a-little-bit-more-than-thirty-page mini-mag does a fine kickstart with a larger-than-life Carsten Nicolai interview and dope’n’ minimalist illustration.”
— Lodown

“Denn trotz und wegen des Formats birgt das künftig monatlich erscheinende Periodikum einen Vorteil: Es ist grosszügig. Mit einem sehr zurückhaltenden aber stringentem Layout: Klar definiert, minimalis-tisch und ohne Spielereien. [...] mono.kultur funktioniert.”
— Style & the Family Tunes