Lisa Hall // News

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Tuesday, 24 November 2015

Mobile Audio Fest

Locus Sonus: Mobile Audio Fest
19-22 Nov 2015

 I had the pleasure of visiting Locus Sonus and the Mobile Audio Fest in Aix-en-Provence last week, visiting from CRiSAP at London College of Communication due to some excellent Erasmus + training funding.

"Mobile Audio Fest is a 4 day event exploring the relationships between mobility and (new) forms of listening and sound-making. Conceived as a series of “rendezvous” in Aix-en-Provence and Marseille, Mobile Audio Fest presents 15 projects by international artists in which mobility plays a central part. The program includes performances, installations, apps, soundwalks, audiowalks, workshops and talks."

Here are a few of my quick tweets as I visited some of the art works:





More soon...

About Locus Sonus:

 "Locus Sonus audio in art, is a research group whose main aim is to explore the, ever evolving, relationship between sound, place and usage. In an Art/Science tradition our research involves experimentation with emerging audio technologies particularly those relating to sound transmission, mobilization or spatialisation. Maintained by the art schools of Aix en Provence and Bourges, Locus Sonus is concerned with practice driven research and transdisciplinary approaches to the arts of sound."

 http://maf.locusonus.org/


Friday, 25 September 2015

sound mapping

A large sound map over London Fields showing 9 sound works / routes / pieces by 9 artists, accessed only by gps and bike mounted speakers (sonic bike).

A very very site specific sound map that despite being made online is only to be heard in situ.


Summer Pedalling Games: http://sonicbikes.net/the-summer-pedalling-games/

Monday, 14 September 2015

We Built this City - Pop up Shop!

Excited to be a part of a pop up shop on Carnaby Street! 

My Musical Braille prints will be available to buy in this pop up between 19th-27th Sept.

The Pop Up shop takes over We Built this City in conjunction with London Design Festival, to showcase University of the Arts London Alumni art work, thanks to Made in Arts London.


56-57 Carnaby Street, London, W15 9QF

Monday–Wednesday  10am–7pm
Thursday–Saturday  10am–8pm
Sunday  12noon–6pm

More info: 
http://www.webuilt-thiscity.com/event/made-in-arts-london-pop-up/
https://madeinartslondon.wordpress.com/2015/08/20/mial-pop-up-shop-at-we-built-this-city/

Tuesday, 1 September 2015

Sound Map development

Sonic map development for The Summer Pedalling Games:

1. play map.
A sound free proposal for mapping made on day one.

2. a Route
The beginnings of a linear section of the sound work. Start and end point shown below. This mapped route will make up the first part, a specific sound journey, of my sound work.



3. Free zones
Part two of the sound work - the addition of a free area that can be explored without any specific route needed (shown to the left of park). The cycling reality of this showed that the organisation of the roads lead to uninspired cycling exploration though.


4. A better Free zone
On the right of the park, this area allows free routeless riding, without the rigid structure that the area to the left of the park offered. Here the cycling is more interesting, the roads winding, the architecture and function of the area more varied and in flux which gives a more appropriate area for routeless exploration in relation to the themes of my work. 



Above is the final map of my sonic cycling work. A readable map for cyclists is coming soon ...

More about the Summer Pedalling Games: http://sonicbikes.net/news/

Tuesday, 25 August 2015

Mobile Audio ... compositon for a sonic bike

I am developing a sound work for the sonic bikes at the Bicrophonic Research Institute, together with a group of other artists (who are also new to sonic bike sound composition) for The Summer Pedalling Games, on London Fields, 5&6 Sept - https://www.facebook.com/events/1456213021350873/1468684233437085/

I've been annotating my maps as I create them, documenting the slow learning process of creating sounds, mapping sounds, and then test riding them.

It has been incredibly interesting and often unexpected to learn how the sounds are affected by a number of factors, despite anticipation and planning for these:
- affected by the place
- affected by the listening experience of riding,
- affected by the quality of the sound outdoors
- affected by the connotations of hearing those sounds in those spaces.
- measuring up against my ideas and intent for the work.

Sunday 16th Aug
Key

  • Pink squares are the sounds 'zones' that the bike must ride through in order to trigger the sounds.
  • Black text is a simple name of the sound file that will play
  • Blue text is a description of my experience hearing it on a sonic bike.







The Summer Pedalling Games info & facebook event  |  Bicrophonic Research Institute  |  @bicrophonics


Thursday, 20 August 2015

Sonic Bike Workshop

Last weekend (15&16 Aug) I attended a sonic bike workshop at the Bicrophonic Research Institute, lead by Kaffe Matthews.



Together with 8 other artists and groups I learnt how to use the sonic bikes from a compositional perspective in order to be able to create my own sound work for the Summer Pedalling Games in September. We learnt about the mapping software, the capabilities of the mapper when working with the Raspberry Pi's and the practicalities of the composition on a musical bike out and about in the streets.



The Mapping tool.
Is brilliant. You draw shapes over a map where you want sounds to be heard. It all feels very simple and powerful. You suddenly have the ability to create new soundscapes on any street anywhere, laying over new sound spaces with a simple shape drawing tool.

Its not that simply though, and its easy to screw things up. You name the shapes exactly as you name your sound files, sound files must be saved and named in certain ways and of a certain size and length. Get any bit wrong and your bike might not boot up, or you wont hear your file, or in my case you get played noise at, very loudly instead of hearing your sounds. In short I ran from laptop to bike wielding a tiny usb stick until I get it right. And that was most of my Sunday morning.



Composing.
Kaffe made us ride, sound free, around the park and nearby street to first get an idea of how long the streets are in cycle time, what the acoustics are, how easy it is to cycle and really to pay attention to anything else in these spaces that we might not have spotted on foot. How incredibly useful. My small test street that I had been focusing on in preparation, suddenly became just a 12second ride. So although you can map sound to things, points, objects, it's more appropriate to think of locations in a broader sense - spaces and streets.



My idea.
My proposal was to sound out the built environment, using the bike as the 'Bicrophone', amplifying the streets and the spaces around the bikes as it moved. I wanted to focus on how the built environment sounds, the bricks, the windows, the doors, the railings, shutters, hubcaps, lampposts, rather than the sound of inhabitation and social activation of these spaces (designated use). I had in mind Harbour performances, where boats and vehicles use engines, whistles and bells to create a spatial performance, but was converting this to a city symphony in my mind, where people opened and closed windows, rattled shutters and slammed doors. While I also had in mind the silent and often unseen infrastructure of our urban spaces - the hubcaps that give sign to underground tunnels, cables, pipes and utilities, the lampposts that we reply on for lighting but look past, overhead electrical cables etc - e.g all the signs of planning and purpose for the space that we look and listen past. Plus deconstruction, building in the local area being demolished, road works and dismantling. I wanted to create this work with field recordings and let the layout of the items on the street create the composition.

However, learning and testing how the system actually works has changed things slightly, and so my work will take a slightly different course now... let the composition begin!

 - -

The Summer Pedalling Games will be held on 5&6th September in and around London Fields.
More info - https://www.facebook.com/events/1456213021350873/

The event is a Bicrophonic Research Institute event - http://sonicbikes.net/

















Tuesday, 11 August 2015

Sound Arts News & Public Arts News

Some of my lunch break reading online:



Sites of architectural and acoustic interest - UK

Full of Noises: A weekend of new music and sound art, Cumbria, UK

... to keep an eye out for the next year.
http://fonfestival.org/


 - - -


Public sound art work - UK

 Anthem: a public sound art work, Luton, UK

 Central Bedfordshire Council have commissioned an audio work as a public art work for Woodside Link Road. Excellent news.

Visual artist Bettina Furnée and sound artist Marcus Leadley are creating the work. local residents are asked to submit sounds that 'best represent the area', Leadley will then create a composition from this and Furnée will create a visual sound wave along the sides of the road.

"Every place is alive with sounds: the sounds of animals and birds, the wind in the trees or familiar sounds such as church bells and traffic sounds. Some are mundane and some are extraordinary. Some we hold dear and some we wish would go away! While we always hear sound we often fail to really listen. The Woodside Link public art project celebrates both sound and image, drawing the two together in a rich audio-visual mapping of the surrounding Houghton Regis and Luton area. We are asking people to actively listen out and record their favourite sounds and contribute them to the project."

A nice idea, and brilliant to read about public sound art, especially one that involves others in its creation. 

However, the sound is available as a download or CD which does not make it easy to access. The likelihood is that most people will see this work and not hear it. If this sound was transmitted by a radio, just locally to cover the road, drivers would be able to tune in and listen much more easily. 

http://www.luton-dunstable.co.uk/Residents-asked-send-musical-submissions-Woodside/story-27549574-detail/story.html#1

 - - -

Audio James Turrell - AUS

Climata: Audio work created for and in a James Turell light sculpture, National Gallery Australia.

Composer and sound artist Robert Curgenve has made a 'drone music' style sound works to be heard inside a Turrell light sculpture. He used recordings from 15 of Turrell's light sculptures around the world.

 "Curgenven's Climata is a recording project which recharts the divisions of space as "heard" within James Turrell's Skyspaces" ."If James Turrell employs light to shape space, Curgenven is interested in exploring the manner in which the auditory can manipulate our perception of space and our perception of the shape of time. He has explored this equally within architectural spaces as well as in remote open spaces in outback Australia."

 An interesting pairing of audio and visual works that sound as if they will be complimentary to the experiencing of each work. Something I would very much like to visit.

Review: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/art-and-design/robert-curgenven-climata-in-skyspace-at-the-national-gallery-of-australia-20150806-gismtw.html

Perhaps the Yorkshire Sculpture Park in the UK will commission the works to show in their Turrell light sculpture 'Deer Shelter SkySpace': http://www.ysp.co.uk/whats-on/open-air/james-turrell-deer-shelter-skyspace

 - - -

Hiroshima commemorative work  - USA

 Hiroshima audio-visual art installation: University of Maine, USA

 An audio visual installation made to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Hiroshima bombing. Created by new media artists N.B. Aldrich, John Carney and Duane Ingalls who collaborated with sound artist Adachi Tomomi.

http://bangordailynews.com/2015/08/05/news/bangor/art-at-umaine-commemorates-anniversary-of-hiroshima-bombing/

 - - -

Wednesday, 29 July 2015

Sound, architecture, urbanism, cities, public art . . .

New reading material !
http://invisibleplaces.org/IP2014.pdf


Monday, 20 July 2015

Sound + Architecture

Ooh.. Architecture to enable speech (J. Gordon) & to study affects of sound (A.Catelli) inspiring stuff at Free Range Degree shows on Brick Lane.

Thursday, 14 May 2015

Soundcamp - May 2015



Two days of urban camping at Stave Hill Ecological Park in London listening to a perpetual dawn chorus streaming live from around the world for 24hours, plus a bat walk with a bat specialist, a 4.30am dawn chorus walks with Peter Cusack and a raspberry pi workshop with Grant Smith.
http://soundtent.org/

Japanese frogs - underwater bees
Bird song
Flocks of Birds chattering in tree
Blackbirds
Thrush
Great tit
Blur tit
Panda Cam
Robin
Reed warblers
bat clicks, kisses
Static
fzzzzz
Rain on water
Sirens
Music
Distant traffic
Rain on plastic hoods
Waterproof clothing
Crunch of snails
The first bus
Pidgeons
Crows
Magpies
45mins of dawn
Rain on tent
Urban London - blackbirds song reverberating around houses off brick walls
Natives and visitors
Planes
Trill, churr, liquid, melodic
blackbirds song improves through the season (but you have to listen to just the one to tell)

Thursday, 19 March 2015

Sound art for the V&A Friday Late this March


I'm pleased to be exhibiting a travelling sound installation for the next Late event at the V&A. The event's theme is based upon the Alexander McQueen exhibition, Spectacle of the Species, and I'm collaborating with a fashion designer Quoi Alexander.

The sound work will consist of a cricket soundscape, worn by the models and carries through the galleries. 

Inspired by iPod culture for mobile music, this work explores an earlier form of sonic body adornment - a fashion trend from 1000years ago of concealing crickets in clothing for their song.


March’s Friday Late celebrates the V&A’s Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty exhibition. 
18.30 - 22.00 |  #FridayLate
From cocoons in gestation to birds in flight, the natural world was fashion designer Alexander McQueen’s most prominent source of inspiration. Join us for an evening of skeletal armoury, skins, scales and crystals as we explore the natural elements that were intrinsic to McQueen’s vision.



Sound Art for the Royal Academy Late event, March 26th

I've been commissioned by the Royal Academy to create a sound work for the late event 'Rubens: Decrypted' on 26th March.



I have created two 'Whispering Walls' that will share ideas about the the life and actions of the man behind the paintings using speakers hidden behind the images. One wall addresses his his careers as a diplomat, the other, his travels across the world.

Each wall visually references ideas of Phychogeography using imagery of Rubens paintings to prompt a new understanding. While sonically the walls explore field recordings of place and space aswell as concrete poetry style dialogue.

https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/event/rubens-decrypted-late


Rubens: Decrypted
AttRAct Late | for 16–25 year olds | 26th March | 7 - 9.30

Decipher the links between Rubens and the many artists he inspired at this Late event, featuring interactive creative workshops, 17th-century selfies, music by The Coveryard, a Whispering Wall, feasts and much more.

Join us on a mission through the ‘Rubens and His Legacy’ exhibition to unlock the secrets of this celebrated painter, diplomat and spy.

This Late event is curated by attRAct, the RA’s Programme for Young People, and is suitable for 16-25 year olds only.

Exhibition of Embossed Prints: Capsule, this April


In this group exhibition organised by Made in Arts London I will be showing my series of embossed 'Musical Braille' prints.

Capsule, Embassy Tea Gallery 
8th - 12th April  | PV 8th, 6-9pm
https://madeinartslondon.wordpress.com/2015/02/03/mial-independent-exhibition-capsule/

"Made in Arts London presents ‘Capsule’ our third annual independent exhibition showcasing art and design from UAL students and recent graduates. A curated collection of site specific creations, limited editions, fine art, design, video & performance pieces will be exhibited, including Made in Art London’s latest Spring/Summer 2015 Collection chosen by Kathleen Soriano, Dominic Wilcox and Natalie Brett.

‘Capsule’ is an exhibition celebrating the journey of our artists as they work towards their careers as creative practitioners, and the journey of Made in Arts London in supporting them to do so.  All the work on display will be available for sale, offering a unique platform to collect affordable art and design pieces from some of the emerging stars of London’s art scene, and the next generation of artists."

Exhibiting Artists:

Adriana Krawcewicz, Alex Wood, Alexander Devereux, Anastasija Pudane, Anita Chowdry, Annalaura Masciave, Aphra O’Connor, Arnaud Meneroud, Bart Hajduk, Cally Lathey, Charlotte Whitehead, Chloe Hope King, Christopher John Simpson, Conall McAteer, Deniz Paran, Dimitri Yin, Dominika Świerad, Egor Kraft, Elizabeth Mackintosh, Emily Carter, Fiona Masterton, Fredrik Andersson, Fru Kenworthy-Browne, Helen Wilson, Imogen Parry, Inga Loyeva, Isabella Pagnotta, Isabelle Mattern, James Rogers, Jazz Szu-Ying Chen, Jessica Proctor, Jessica Windhorst, Joseph Jackson, Katy Binks, Klaus is Koming, Lara Drnovsek, Laura Aldous, Leonid Dementiev, Libby Heaney, Lisa Hall, Liz Nehdi, Maggie Jingyun Shu, Meiko Kikuta, Mette Sterre, Miranda Sofroniou, Monica Alcazar-Duarte, Moonjung Song, Naomi Takeda, Olga Krasanova, Olly Fathers, Pamm Hong, Patcharakan (Mai) Vongprasert, Robbie Porter, Ronnie Chen, Rowan Ottesen, Saachi Mehta, Sabrina Shah Hakim, Saffie Pluck, Sarah Fortais, Sarah ‘Kenikie’ Palmer, Simon Peters, Sylvia Moritz, Tess Williams, Victoria Batt, Ximena Escobar and Yana Zino.

Monday, 2 March 2015

My new comission






Friday, 20 February 2015

Performing fluxus scores at White Cube Gallery

Thursday 12th and 19th February 2015

Invited by CRiSAP, I and other graduates from the Sound Arts MA at London College of Communication, plus current PhD students, performed various fluxus event scores at the White Cube gallery as a part of the Christian Marclay exhibition.

A little bit about the exhibition first:

The exhibition uses sound and image to show and encourage us to make music from anything. 

Marclay presents us with a video installation where he walks the streets of east London tapping, kicking and rolling bottles, glasses and cans. The video montage presents a loose composition that sonifies the alcoholic left overs of the east London night life.

An immersive animation projects onomatopoeias dancing around a room, these cartoon cut outs of POP! Bang, Shhhhhh, pooooow form a dynamic 3D score around you. As you read along in your head you can hear the performance. For example, the bobbing of water along a tideline created by 'blobs', the popping of bubbles up the screens shown by circular 'PoP's and the sheets of grey rain running in diagonal strips of 'SSSSHhhhhhhhhhh' relentlessly pouring down.

The glasses mentioned in the video installation were collected by Marclay and now adorn a performance space in the gallery. This room hosts daily performances by sounds and arts practitioners who explore these themes. The performances are recorded and cut into a vinyl in the gallery by the Vinyl Factory Press, the cover is even screen printed in the gallery too. 

The invitation to perform fluxus events scores is centred around these glasses and the water theme that runs through the show.

 I chose to work with George Brechts Drip Music and Bob Lens's #252.



  


I performed this multiple times, experimenting with glass sizes, with multiple performers, with multiple glasses per performances and of course introducing the classic metal bucket and stool to stand on.







This performance lasted just under an hour and consisted of me mainly just moving drips back and forth ... in a totally absorbed state. I would have happily performed it for longer if I hadn't ran out of water.  

-- 

Every Tuesday - Friday, 12-4 you can catch intermittent fluxus performances in this room by either CRiSAP or RCA students. The scores will all be water based, but the interpretations will vary. 

Friday, 9 January 2015

Exhibition / Event: Homespun, 31st Jan, London.

An exhibition by Ceci Lombardi and Lisa Hall created for Duvet Days.

'Homespun' brings together work by Ceci Lombardi and Lisa Hall - both exploring what it is to make your own fun from within a domestic setting.



Ceci has taken the traditional Portuguese 'Trapilhos' and with guidance and assistance from her mother and sister, she has woven her fragmented memories, thoughts and feelings creating a series of colourful abstract hanging works.

"Trapilhos" are long spagetti-like rags traditionally used in Portugal to create crochet kitchen rugs and other crafts. Ceci grew up with these in her home as her own mother also makes them. From these memories and the urge to explore them, she has knitted, painted, played, improvised and very simply had fun with them.

Lisa is inspired by childhood memories of creating unusual garden inventions with her family and has become captivated by a website that embodies this playful attitude - blowing bubbles on demand into a garden in Florida. For Duvet Days Lisa is inviting you to join in blowing bubbles, responding to the activity on the website.

The bubble cam was set up 10 years ago by a couple called Andie and Mike. People from all over the world visit the site to 'blow bubbles'. By using this online trigger, Lisa hopes to offer you an excuse to enjoy these type of games, to be interrupted by the fun of pointless play.

 Please RSVP on facebook so that we can get enough bubbles and cocktails. 

  - - 

 About Duvet Days

 Duvet Days is a gallery in a Tiki Bar in artist's Roxy Topia and Paddy Gould's garden, it shows invited artists and serves cocktails.

 " Each show opens one night but if you can't make it get in touch and arrange a time to come and see the work.

Days in your duvet are about a kind of self-sufficiency too, low maintenance, make your own fun, get loose.

That's an artistic point of view as well as something gently political. x "

101 Barclay Road

London, United Kingdom

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