Acoustic Shadows: An Exploration of the Sense of Space An audiovisual immersive and interactive installation
Acoustic Shadows at the Dallas Museum of Art
November 2011–October 2012
Transformations conference at the C3 : May 17, 2012
Reactive Environment:
Introduction: Acoustic Shadows is an audiovisual and interactive installation, conceived by Agence 5970, and is currently showing at The Dallas Museum of Art in The Center for the Creative Connections (C3) through Spring 2012.
‘Acoustic Shadows’ is an audiovisual immersive and interactive installation, based on a modern Interpretation of the Myth of Orpheus. The spectator is enveloped into a multi-sensory and reactive recursive System, composed of the physical space, 3-dimensional sound, and projected images. The System actually ‘listens’ for changes in the environment generated by the presence and movement of the spectator, and modifies the audiovisual content accordingly. The reflection and absorption of sound waves upon bodies create the auditory manifestation of silent movement, which, in this context is termed, ‘Acoustic Shadows.’
The scene depicted in the work represents Orpheus, surrounded by Shadows of the Underworld, and consumed by the physical manifestation of the particular shadow of Eurydice. The interactive installation is mainly supported by a sonic environment that envelopes the visual experience and offers a multi-sensorial immersion, in which the traditional dichotomy of the object & subject and of the observer & the observed is erased, giving way to the emergence of a sensitive space in which the present entities dialogue by means of the visual and auditory manifestations of their presence. The center of the work is the sensitive audiovisual domain in which traces (or acoustic shadows) are imprinted upon a shared fugacious environment.
‘Acoustic Shadows’ integrates
• Linear audiovisual components that contribute to the symbolic representation of the Myth of Orpheus.
• An acoustic and visual system that detects movements.
• A device that generates visual and sonic representations of these movements.
Scientific & Philosophical Foundation
‘Acoustic Shadows : an Exploration of the Sense of Space’ attempts to simulate perceived presence, or
awareness of the otherness. The scholarly study is inspired by James Gibson’s theory of Ecology of Perception, in that we inspect perceptual awareness as directly related to one’s surroundings. In other words, we are not exhibiting signals of pseudo-otherness rather creating a milieu where otherness imprints itself on the environment.
The physical interactive installation creates a sonic environment which envelops the visual experience; as
opposed to the classical frontal representation, in order to mirror the tactility of sound and to shift from
audiovisual representation to multi-sensory immersion. The traditional dichotomy of the object and the subject, the observer and the observed, is challenged, revisited and progressively replaced by the emergence of a meaningful environment in which these entities dialogue by exchanging manifestations of their existence. ‘Acoustic Shadows’ was inspired by Frank Dufour’s academic research regarding auditory perception of moving objects in space. During this research, he discovered that listeners, placed in a diffused sonic field, could be aware of the presence and movement of silent objects in this environment. This awareness is acquired by the perception of slight transformations applied to the spectrum of diffused sound, by the presence and movement of these objects.
The first scientific documentation of Acoustic Shadows has been published, Fall 2011, in Sound Effects, An
Interdisciplinary Journal of Sound and Sound Experience. Audiovisual Projection System & Movement Detection. The core of the system is composed of a Pure Data program, fulfilling the following functions:
– Linear projection of the film and sound in surround 5.1 format
– Analysis of the data issued from an infrared camera and microphones & calculation of models.
– Real-time remix of images deducted from models of movements
– Synthesis and diffusion of sounds deducted from models of movements by hyper-directional speakers.
Acoustic Movement Detection
The phenomenon of perception of acoustic shadows is reproduced by the use of two types of sensors :
• A system composed of 3 hyper-directional speakers and two microphones that analyzes the variations
of intensity and spectral content of the sonic environment in the space.
• An infrared camera aimed at the public analyzes its movements.
The information deducted from these sensors is then recomposed to construct visual and sonic models thatrepresent the size of the bodies in movement, the position, direction and speed of these movements.
Hyper-directional Speakers
The hyper-directional speakers utilized are the Audio-Spot Light AS 24.
Depending on the size and geometry of the space, the installation requires 2-4 speakers of this type.
The speakers create a zone in which specified sound is perceived to contribute to the organization of space and the representation of ‘sonic shadows.’
Acoustic Coverage:
Visualization & Sonification of Movements
The models produced by the analysis of movements pilot the choice of pre-recorded visual sequences
whose superimposition on the linear film is modulated in a continuous fashion by the analysis of incoming
information. These same models inform the sonic synthesis system that feeds into the hyper-directional
speakers.
The C3 was envisioned, within the Museum, as a point of attraction and convergence of new audiences and emerging artistic exploration. The installation of Acoustic Shadows in this space, contributes to the general movement of experimentation launched by the direction of the Museum. The exhibit is supported and surrounded by educational venues and workshops oriented towards targeted publics.
Acoustic Shadows was first presented in a linear version for a concert with Le Laboratoire Musique et Informatique de Marseille (MIM), on February 10, 2011 at La Cité de la Musique, Marseille, France, under the title, « Soft Thresholds » and, in a limited interactive version at La Fondation Vasarély, Aix, France, April 15 to May 17, 2011, under the title, « Acoustic Shadows ».