I took my previous approach to sound sketching but implemented it in a louder indoor space rather than a soft outdoor space. Sounds here are much more muddled together than in the outdoor space where each sound could be pin pointed to a location. When inside an open concept cafe the sounds really do mix together creating this blanket of very loud flowing noise. It was hard to distinguish what was loudest at times since it was all continuous yet sporadic. Link to video here – https://youtu.be/XCwbwKwMLFU
Attempting to analyze all of the sensorial aspects around me through an abstraction of my physical self as receptacle of sensorial input.
Thinking about how sensorial perception of materials is shaped by the environment they exist in. A warm wood bench in a sun ray is a pleasant experience to find ones self in while that same bench on a colder rainy day could find one feeling damp. Sensorial perception is then not only about the objects that inhabit a space, but how external forces impact how those perceptions are relayed to us.
For this portion of the analysis I attempted to use a LIDAR scan from my iPad as a way to capture space and thus annotate more clearly on it the sensorial aspects of the space I was in. Using this scan as well would allow one to revisit the sensorial pocket of space they were in previously and re-examine the conditions they found themselves in. To notice again the perception of the concrete paving stones, blotchy with moisture from that mornings rain. A streaky wood grain turning green from moss in portions. And a cold metal armrest, reflective of the mood of the day.
I sat on a bench near the seawall to listen to the sounds of False Creek. Even though there were no roads immediately adjacent, the hum of traffic was constant. The aquabus would near then float away, moving the water and creating waves. Cyclists would whiz by, the sound intensifying as they approached. Pedestrians and cyclists would pass, their feet pounding the pavement. A water feature rippled behind me.
After listening to the various sounds and noting where they were coming from, I attempted to draw what each sounded like if it were a line. I also noted the various topics of conversation I overheard — with covid being the most popular.
Recording 2: rattling bike, podcast playing on speaker, crow
Windplay
I created a windplay object out of paper from my recycling bin. I crumpled up each piece of paper and attached it to a string and hung them at different heights in a cluster. There was not enough wind on the day that I hung it outside to make a substantial sound (see video) so I swung the object around and recorded the sound it made instead (see audio). The crumpled papers hitting each other create a rough and sharp sound, reminiscent of walking on fallen leaves in autumn.
In-Class Assignment: Sounds around my building as a score [will revisit]
Tuning In Exercise: Mapping sounds on campus and their associations
Windplay Exercise:
I created a wind sculpture out of watercolor and trace paper. The watercolor paper served as a structural element from which to affix trace paper strips. First I created one that had a curvilinear spine with trace wrapped around it. Then I figured I would test out a second option, which was watercolor paper strip fixed in a circle with trace hanging from it. I initially brought them outside behind my apartment, but because it is a small park enclosed by mid rise buildings there was no wind. I moved to an alley way next to two high rises because I know there is always a wind tunnel there. The wind sculptures produced slightly different sounds: the first one produced scrapping sounds as the trace hit the watercolor paper whereas the second created loud, shuddering, crinkly noises as the trace bumped itself.
In-Class Exercise
In this exercise I observed sounds from my balcony. My method of representation uses black to show sounds with bass (People talking, walking, and biking) and blue to show sounds with higher pitches (chirping birds and the rattling and rustling of squirrels). The location, paths, and radiation of these sounds are shown both in plan and section.
Assignment 8-
Tuning In
I sat at a bench at Kitsilano Beach Park and observed the sounds around me. I thought about each sound and tried to express its characteristics through lines and how I experienced them traveling into my ear. The loudest sounds were the crashing waves of the water which is expressed in back and forth movement, getting noisier when crashing into a wall or the sand at the shore. The airplane above was loud, but not as crisp of a sound compared to the water. The airplane sound lines are shown as very blurry and dense. Similar distant sounds were the trees and vehicle traffic happening behind me, which are shown as a background noise which was not as overwhelming and distinguishable. The sounds of people walking, talking, running, and biking on the path were significantly dynamic and quickly paced. For example, the sound of a bike zipping by was louder as it approached and became quit immediately when it left. Its closeness allowed me to hear the sound of the tire rubber rolling on damp asphalt. The path of the tires and their rolling shape show their presence in my hearing experience, as the bottoms of the tires are darkened to show their unique sounds when making contact with the wet ground. The sounds of dogs running on the beach were faint, as the small movement of sand from their paws are represented with faint sand-like dots.
Wind Play
I created a wind-play object from plastic. Cutting equally sized strips and tying them together, I formed three long strips. After observing how they behaved in the wind, I was surprised to how the weight of the knots changed the way each strip swayed in the wind. The contrast between the three strips created a dancing effect, as each strip uniquely wiggled but still followed the same motion and direction of the other. The structured fluidity of the object’s movements reminded me of an octopus and its tentacles moving underwater. I learned from creating this object that wind energy plays an important role in not only natural occurring forms and patterns, but how vegetation and habitat behave and move. How can we design so wind can be “seen” or manipulated in the landscape?
Examining a dead shrub and bench in the Buchanan Courtyard
How my WFH set up feels…
…and sounds
My partner and I have been talking to the crows in our neighbourhood for several years. This one is new to me, but clearly was willing to have a conversation about the crackers in front of me.
The sound of crows is somehow magical. The sound they make in the large groups that congregate in Trout Lake park and the campus of BCIT is ethereal, with layers upon layers of cawing and cackling from all directions and different distances. The sound of a singular crow can be annoying when they caw. But this fellow was making the “human” sound, a particular noise crows make when they are interested in humans.
Attempt #2: This version adds context and spatializes the sounds drawn in the previous version to show where the sounds are coming from in relation to the observer. I also drew myself to show my scale in relation to the distant and near sounds.Tuning In: sounds at Spanish Banks beach. I created sound recordings at 9 different locations on Spanish Banks Beach on Friday at 7pm after a heavy rainfall. It was dark and low tide, and there was some brief drizzling while I was there.
Context map showing major transportation routes/locations contributing to noise pollution heard on site.
This video shows spectrograms displaying sound frequency (pitch) in Hz over time for each of the 9 audio recordings in sequence. Colours represent amplitude (loudness) in dB.
Windplay: exploring sound and movement with wind. I taped together sheets of iridescent cellophane to a carboard tube to catch the wind. The material is extremely sensitive to even the slightest breeze. Both the large scale wave-form movement of the whole sheet and the small scale movements of little creases within the sheet contributed to the sound. When tested outside, the sheet movement showed how wind intensity and direction changed over time. When tested inside afterwards using a fan at full blast, the movements were much faster and much louder and resembled water. The fact that the material catches different colors in the light when it moves made me more in tune to the little movements (and also the sounds from the little crinkles) which further enhanced my experience of the sound.
Experimented with representing sheet music and gestural line drawing overlaid on top of each other to show a connection between the rhythm of the physical (wavelength) experience, visual (sheet music) experience, and emotional (expressed through line) experience.
For a quick first attempt, Im happy with the concept, but the execution was experimental at best.
I wanted to experiment with less static ways of representing audio in the landscape, as sound is inherently always in motion and the addition of a time element to the representation could add a whole new layer of meaning to the diagrammatic representation of it.
Tuning In: sounds at Spanish Banks beach. I created sound recordings at 9 different locations on Spanish Banks Beach on Friday at 7pm after a heavy rainfall. It was dark and low tide, and there was some brief drizzling while I was there.
