Lisbon’s Sound Art Greenhouse
IDEA: Bring to debate an important and often neglected variable in the planning of public space: sound.
WHAT: The second edition of Lisboa Soa: a multiple day event which presents sound art installations and performances which discuss urbanism and auditory culture, this time at a beautiful botanic greenhouse in the centre of Lisbon.
WHY: Imagine a place that celebrates the world of sound, which leads you through labyrinthine paths that communicate acoustically with you. Imagine a garden populated by sounds that call attention to all the other sounds around, an imaginary soundscape that seeks to stimulate hearing and make you think about what you are listening to.
BY: Lisboa Soa, at Estufa Fria, Lisbon. Curated by Raquel Castro. www.lisboasoa.com #lisboasoa #soundart #EstufaFria #Urbanism #Greenhouse #ContemporaryArt #Lisbon www.thosewhomakeswaves.com #TWMW
Juan Sorrentino, Giro The Movement of Vibration www.juansorrentino.com.ar This new work made during his residency at Lisboa Soa, continues Sorrentino's research into the modulation of sound by movement and reflection from different surfaces. The effect of 'Giro' results from the rotation of the cones on the rafts that direct the sound to a single point. In this constant, but often wind affected movement, these sound rafts give us a new conception of space and time. This movement modulates the frequencies of white noise playing through the loudspeakers and also follows its emergence and disappearance, just like the waves of the sea. This sound reminds us of water, filters through the plants and invades the space of the Estufa Fria greenhouse, which is daily watered by a sprinkler system that rotates and sprays water to the leaves and roots.
Sonoscopia, Fauna www.sonoscopia.pt In 'Fauna', an artificial ecosystem is created that recreates an imaginary animal life. Small musical automatons inhabit small boxes distributed throughout the physical space of the Fria Greenhouse, emitting sounds, interacting with each other and musically complementing the sound and space where they are inserted. The mechanics are controlled by a set of microprocessors, programmed to induce instructions to various types of mechanical actuators that will be translated into musical actions. At the base of the functioning of this ecosystem, are algorithms that recreate natural processes, such as statistical data of population growth, fractals or genetic algorithms.
Juan Sorrentino, Fragile www.juansorrentino.com.ar
Adriana Sá & John Klima www.cityarts.com How to intervene in the natural beauty of a cave with water? The title of this installation is borrowed from a Zen poetry book. Space is now reactive, like the body of an instrument. By producing shadow on light sensors, people activate small balls that plunge into the water, producing concentric rings that intersect. This shaking drives the movement of floating metal bowls, which contain other balls, glass and metal. The larger the bowl, the greater the sound cycle produced by the roller. Orchestration emerges as you listen to the relationship between objects, space, water, and shadows. Slowly, with time for silence.
Cláudia Martinho, Passagem www.spacefrequencies.org What do you hear in a microcosm with hundreds of plant species in the middle of a city? The Passage installation explores ways of listening to this ecology through acoustic phenomena. A sound landscape amplifies the vibratory forces propagating, and modulates specific frequencies in resonance with the space of a tunnel. The experience involves us in active and immersive listening, in a way of attuning ourselves to the environment and to ourselves.
João Ricardo, Cactusworkestra www.lixoluxo.com It is a plastic and sonorous creation that starts from the instrumentation of 20 prepared and sonorized cacti, positioned in the greenhouse in diverse positions and constellations. Passing visitors can intervene in the cacti individually or collectively, exploring dynamics as the main object in sound, thus working variations of speed, intensity, and timbre. The aim of this project is to motivate the general public to develop sound sensitivity, critical sense, in the unceasing search for unrepeatable sound.
Mileece In the itinerant life that brought her from French farms to crystal gardens in Los Angeles, Mileece became aware of the many forms of man's impact on the natural world. Their 'ecoscapes' are generated by electromagnetic emissions from plants and by hand-held musical instruments based on sensors. Mileece attaches electrodes to the leaves of plants, which collect their bio-electric impulses. These micro-currents are then translated into harmonic sounds, using a program created and designed by Mileece. In this way, a garden becomes an orchestra.
