Chris Jackson

Life Through the Windows of Life Through the Windows of Life...

Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Life Through the Windows of Life Through the Windows of Life ∞

‘Life Through the Windows of Life Through the Windows of Life ∞’ is a piece I made that acts as a visual portrait of Worcester city as viewed from three different but similar points in the cities library. The work shows three 10 minute sections of film made on the same day slowed down to 15 minutes to accentuate the natural movements of people, transport and animals. Anything can change in such a small period of time, and this film highlights this through weather fluctuations and humans going about their everyday life in an attempt to better understand a rhythm of life that can easily be forgotten.

The audio is captured from inside the library to contrast the activities of indoor life with that of the outdoor. Throughout the duration of the film, people are heard talking, newspapers are rustled and the sound of wind begins to penetrate through the ambience.

Above are some screenshots from the software used in the live...

Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Above are some screenshots from the software used in the live performance. The first shot shows the ‘layers’ used in the piece, where we slowly built up throughout the 6 minutes. The first layer used is the microphone section, where we record samples of dragged and dropped chairs which are then processed by adding a reverb effect and a speed change (as can be seen in the second screenshot) to affect how the recording sounds. ‘Wiro’, a wire instrument constructed from an old microphone, is then added on top of this with a resonator effect (as can be seen in the third screenshot) to deepen the sound and begin the distortion. Finally, a tape recorder is plugged in and slowly turned up with a pre-recorded track to achieve a ‘perceived perfection’ - a clearing of what is represented as the mind.

SISTER || LIVE PERFORMANCE Performed on two separate occasions,...

Sun, 05 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

SISTER || LIVE PERFORMANCE

Performed on two separate occasions, this video was created to document how we craft a live show through live loops, compression techniques and layering to create soundscapes that attempt to represent memory repression and degradation. As highlighted in my five observations, the work uses visualisations of trees to simulate synapses and utilises microphones, a hand crafted wire instrument and cassette tapes to capture the environment of the room the performance is situated in.

It was good to get people’s feedback on this, as it was the first time we had performed the piece in front of an audience. Various comments were made, though one of the most valuable was how the way in which Harry and I become an important part of the performance ourselves. By crouching in front of the screen, without what we did on the computer being visible to the audience, a sense of mystery is created which is something we didn’t even consider when planning.

The first version of the visualisation to be projected in the...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

The first version of the visualisation to be projected in the background of our live performance.

SISTER - WAVE-TABLE AND CHAIRS || EXPERIMENT II Our second...

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

SISTER - WAVE-TABLE AND CHAIRS || EXPERIMENT II

Our second experiment was set up in the project space. A smaller space created more reverb that wasn’t necessarily a good thing because it raises the issue of control in the work. A visualisation was projected onto the wall (as can be seen above) whilst running the sound, which was recorded to try and accentuate the cyborg qualities of the audio.

Lucerna A short film I made with Anna Wilson. The work explores...

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Lucerna

A short film I made with Anna Wilson. The work explores manifestations of movement and interprets this through the use of sculptural elements whilst incorporating sound, light and space. All audio, visuals and sculptures are completely original works. It was useful to work with film in this sort of way, and good to work with someone that was also interested in the same style of art as me.

Raymond Scott - ‘Nescafe’ (1960s) An early example...

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 23:19:00 +0000

Raymond Scott - ‘Nescafe’ (1960s)

An early example of electronic music. The simple style of the piece creates a unique style that would be hard to replicate today.

A piece by Wouter van Veldhoven. By using tape recorders and...

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 23:17:00 +0000

A piece by Wouter van Veldhoven. By using tape recorders and loop systems, Veldhoven creates minimal techno music by using various simple techniques that deal with delay and saturation. It would be interesting to work with a physical media like this, and is interesting to see how other musicians and artists use techniques to create this type of sound.

WAVE-TABLE AND CHAIRS || EXPERIMENT I Today me and Harry made a...

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 21:18:56 +0000

WAVE-TABLE AND CHAIRS || EXPERIMENT I

Today me and Harry made a short film to document the work we’ve done in our first experimentational work. We were experimenting with loops, compression techniques and layering to create soundscapes in the space we were working in. Pitch and speed changes altered the entire feel of the piece, as we found out, and I think this could be utilised further along on in our project.

Next to work out is how to display the work as an actual piece. We may try and create a live performance or construct something that viewers can interact with.

CYBORG FOUNDATION | Rafel Duran Torrent ‘Neil Harbisson...

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 01:12:00 +0000

CYBORG FOUNDATION | Rafel Duran Torrent

‘Neil Harbisson was born with achromatopsia, a rare condition that causes complete colour blindness. In 2004, Harbisson and Adam Montandon developed the eyeborg, a device that translates colours into sounds.

Harbisson has been claimed to be the first recognized cyborg in the world, as his passport photo now includes his device. In 2010, Neil Harbisson and Moon Ribas created the Cyborg Foundation, an international organization to help humans become cyborgs. The foundation has also experimented with other sensory devices, including an “earborg,” which translates sound into color, and a “speedborg,” which allows people to detect movement through electronic earrings that vibrate.’

This video shows how cyborg technology is quickly advancing, and also makes light of how people are now being recognised as cyborgs.

My own experimentation with film, using long exposure and...

Thu, 07 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000

My own experimentation with film, using long exposure and encouraging light leaks with a chiminea as a subject. I prefer working with film because the results are more unpredictable than they are on a DSLR.

One of the oldest known photographs of a tornado. It is probable...

Wed, 06 Feb 2013 22:49:00 +0000

One of the oldest known photographs of a tornado. It is probable this image has been “doctored” from the original. At this time, the oldest known photograph of a tornado was taken on April 26, 1884 at Garnett, Kansas.

Source: http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/htmls/wea00206.htm

Old photography fascinates me. The aesthetics of the print add something special to it, and to know that it could be something so historic is amazing.

Wave-Table and Chairs

Wed, 06 Feb 2013 22:47:04 +0000

In our project, we want to attempt to explore and experiment with sound as heard through different objects. We plan to do this by attaching multiple microphone transducers to various pieces of furniture, with the main piece being a Yamaha organ with microphones attached to different parts of it. All the microphones should be attached to a mixing deck, which will allow us to play audio from the microphones live whilst mixing different levels to reduce feedback. In experiments we have done with this, feedback hasn’t been an issue due to the nature of the microphones not picking up certain frequencies once attached to a surface. The microphones we have been using are from Poundland, so provide an extra layer with their quality, but for what we want to achieve, they work perfectly. Encouraging viewers to sit down at the organ to play could provide some interesting sounds, especially if we attach transducers to the legs of the stool as well as the organ. A filter could then also be applied to the sounds to create more depth. For example, a simple reverb effect could change the whole dynamics and atmosphere of the piece.

We also plan to further extend this project with projection, perhaps mapping the organ with projection software and projecting onto it something that would change according to the current sound: maybe the waveform made. This would create more immersion in the piece, and would add to the sense of adjusting the environment with sound.

Sources:

Anthony, S., 2012. Microphone turns any surface into a multitouch interface. [Online]

Available at: http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/111847-microphone-turns-any-surface-into-a-multitouch-interface

Byrne, D., 2005-12. Playing the Building - Exhibition. [Online]

Available at: http://www.davidbyrne.com/art/art_projects/playing_the_building/index.php

Camden Arts Centre, 2013. Film in Space: An exhibition of film and expanded cinema selected by Guy Sherwin. Camden.

Collaboration, Soundcloud - Field Recordings Group (constantly updating). [Sound Recording] (https://soundcloud.com/groups/field-recordings).

Exploring Sound With Contact Microphones. 2010. [Film] Directed by Kristen Roos. Canada. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbjU8UDl2EQ).

French, J. r., n.d. Surface and Field Recordings. [Sound Recording].

Furlong, W., 1994. Audio arts: discourse and practice in contemporary art. London: Academy Editions.

Klich, R., 2012. Multimedia Performance. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Oursler, T., 2012. Exhibition Work (specifically mapped projections).

Schaberg, S., 2006. How to Make a Contact Mic. [Online]

Available at: http://brokenpants.com/?page_id=94

In this short film by Renaud Hallee, music is made through...

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 00:29:00 +0000

In this short film by Renaud Hallee, music is made through physical objects. I find it interesting to see how objects that appear simple can create a complexity around them.

Footnote #10: Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 23:54:38 +0000

Footnote #10:

Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 193.

Netiquette*

Footnote #9: Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 179. Invisible...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 23:22:56 +0000

Footnote #9:

Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 179.

Invisible spectra*

(Tilt back your laptop screen)

Footnote #8:

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 23:13:54 +0000

Footnote #8::

Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 139.

Most Web pages are collections of separate elements*

Footnote #7: Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 131. Low...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 22:54:09 +0000

Footnote #7:

Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 131.

Low bandwidth*

Footnote #6: Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 104. In the...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 22:40:36 +0000

Footnote #6:

Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 104.

In the plagiaristic environment of the Net, where anyone can clone any web site, the artist’s URL is the only guarantor that one is viewing the “original”, most up-to-date and uncompromised version of the work*

Footnote #5: Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 105. Flatness of...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 22:28:00 +0000

Footnote #5:

Internet Art (Rachel Greene); Page 105.

Flatness of the Web*