Gnomon distills the
elements of human form, creating an environment where the intangible
nature of its interactions are made manifest through sound and
motion.The installation indicates how a body's internal processes,
physical form and environment influence each other.
The body's circuitry is in constant resonance with signals that
control our posture, movement and orientation in the world. Bodies
differ naturally, and so do their respective resonances. Interactions
between resonances may be sympathetic or destructive, stable
or unstable. Our relationships with ourselves, others and the
world are thereby held in a dynamic balance through constant
communication.
Gnomon is a group of sound-producing bodies, whose form and
resonance are determined by an audio feedback loop. The sound
producing element in each body is a thin metal wire that contracts
and relaxes in proportion to the amount of signal passing through
it. This wire holds a bronze sheet in tension and is connected
to the speaker terminals of an audio amplifier. The amplifier
receives its input from a contact microphone placed on the sheet,
and a magnet placed under the wire makes it vibrate audibly when
an audio signal is passed through the wire.
This system constitutes a feedback loop that dynamically determines
the shape, motion and sound the bronze sheet produces. However,
environmental variations such as temperature, humidity, air currents
and ambient sound serve to disrupt this stability, producing
changes over time.
Each sound body is approximately
24" x 6" and is suspended from the ceiling. Installation
can include from as little as one body to as many as there are
audio input/output channels. Gnomon has currently been redesigned
to be powered not only by the grid, but also solar panels, and
has appeared in Solar One's CitySol
2007 festival.
Video:
gnomon.mp4 (5'08", 13.7MB)
Schema:
gnomon_diagram2.png
Listen:
Gnomon_1.mp3
(3.57MB, 128kbps)
View:
Sonogram
*Notes: The initial glissandi
are a result of the feedback loop starting, and the structure
flexing.
Listen:
Gnomon_2.mp3
(2.01MB, 128kbps)
View:
Sonogram
*Notes: A similar test to the first one, however
mixer eq values were changed.
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gnomon (single sound body)

detail of sound body

gnomon
at CitySol 2007, NYC

detail of gnomon at CitySol |