There is Something in the Ocean (ongoing project) | Interactive sound installation
“a touch responsive map to sonify the ocean acidification”
There is Something in the Ocean (TiSiO) is a project of sound map installation which aims to raise awareness about the ocean acidification around the world. The intended outcome will take the form of a printed fabric world planisphere which will be surrounded by a multichannel speaker set broadcasting an oceanic soundscape. The map will incorporate the acidity level of maritime spaces based on existing research works and these data could be perceived by the audience thanks to an interactive apparatus of sonification. Visitors will be invited with their hand to probe the surface of the planisphere to reveal the areas most affected by the ocean acidification which are flagged with conductive sensors concealed under the map. If their fingers come into contact with these locations, that will create an alteration of the initial soundscape with interference sounds, a physical trigger which breaks the silence that surrounds the ocean acidification. By engaging the touch and the listening to approach the map of TiSiO, this responsive installation proposes an alternative way of understanding of this very little-known environmental problem, also called the Other Carbon problem of the Earth.
TiSiO is a work-in-progress sound art installation developed as part of my major project for the completion of my MA Sound Arts at the London College of Communication this coming January 2022. In this context of practical work and theoretical research, I am willing to use my artistic sensibility to create a bridge between oceanographic studies and my personal approach of sound practices. Having the opportunity to create a project on the oceanic world is exciting for me because I have always been a body of water enthusiast. Oceans have always been an important source of inspiration for me. They can communicate so many different states — I can reflect, float, drown in them. Highlighting ecological disfigurements of oceans is attuned to my learning journey with my current studies which reveal a strong desire to break the silence of our world damaged by the Anthropocene. My choice for the environmental problem to study went to the ocean acidification due to its status of disregarded climate problem and its pH measurement system which are both difficult to deeply perceive for lots of people. Sounding the acidity is a creative way to unfold a hidden wound of the oceanic world. This is the prism through I want to challenge myself to raise the awareness about this phenomenon. By combining active listening and the physical act of touching an oceanic map, this project unfolds a synergy between sound art and mapping practices as an attempt to re-amplify the connection between our terrestrial life and the world of the bodies of water.
To date, I have been able to build a working prototype of my sound art installation to test how the assemblage of my ideas can operate on a practical level (watch the demonstration video).
More informations will follow!