Endorsed by the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, design and architecture studio mode:lina has created a sonic installation made of a hanging entanglement (in the shape of a cloud) of corrugated pipes, each serving as an amplifier that emits sounds accumulating around its actual position. This project was largely inspired by the concept of Audioarchitektura (Sonicarchitecture), which the studio describes as:
A utopian vision of a city that cannot be heard. An innovative system of sound emission, which isolates people from the unbearable audiosphere of crowded streets, traffic and all the noise that unnaturally has become an inseparable part of our life. Invisible Sonic-buildings, spread along the sidewalks, in parks and boulevards, emitting sound waves that drown out the city noise. Passer-by walking in their range are surrounded by the sound of hypnotic composition of Steve Reich’s concert, broadcasted live from the concert hall or a melody of raindrops falling on the tin roofs of urban buildings. Today this is a utopian technology, but Sonic Architecture is also a basis for discussion on acoustic ecology, city’s acoustic landscape and its impact on the inhabitants.
Having been born and raised in New York City, there is something deeply comforting to me about the incessant sound of honking cars, the click-clack of a businessperson against , and the hustle and bustle of a metropolis. Even at sleep-away camp in the mountains of Colorado, I would lie awake at night, unable to fall asleep because I was unsettled by the sound of nothingness (and a nearby creek), and longed for the sound of a car alarm. On rainy nights, the sound of raindrops falling down on our covered wagons (yes, wagons=bunks; 4 kids per wagon) sort of sufficed, but there’s still something so different about the sound of rain blanketing the city, when urbania is still audible but sounds miles away. What I needed in Colorado at age 12 was a couple of these mp3s of the many seemingly insignificant little sounds that make up the sound of a city:
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
If you’re ever in Poland, the installation is on display at SPOT./ in Poznań.
Post a Comment