Pitch

DandyBerry is a cluster of 11 tall boxes that house a participative audio installation. The voids between the boxes produce a stylized urban environment that encourages an exploration of the mics and speakers. Participants can speak into openings in the boxes and hear themselves played back from other boxes. The proposed audio equipment will enable a layering of playback throughout the Nuit Blanche that forms an evolving timepiece, a record of involvement.

Branding efforts from the building industry is depicted as a series of monotonous packages of architecture. The boxes are covered in layers of bubblewrap. They are lit from within, so the cladding forms a protective seal and a light diffuser. Openings in the boxes for microphone input and speaker output are articulated with zones of perforation. The 2”x2” lumber substructure is anchored to the ground to prevent tipping. The arrangement of the boxes is based on an aerial study of Liberty Village. The neighbourhood blocks form two grids at two different angles, echoing off the railway and the waterfront. They collide in Liberty Village and form hybrid blocks and voids. The invitation to participate in close proximity to the boxes generates intimacy within the tight spacing of the cluster.


4 sets of microphones and speakers are hidden within the boxes, challenging participants to identify the pairings. Participants will hear their own voices distorted in playback, mixed with rustling gravel from unexpected corners of the installation. The gradual layering of playback will produce chance combinations of speech and sound. For the flâneur, random juxtapositions in the recordings are as appealing as the spatial accidents of the city. The installation produces a sonic urbanity; it synthesizes the effect of a crowded and vibrant space. The arrangement of the audio equipment resembles a central nervous system, where the computer is the brain. Each audio signal is handled individually by the computer in real-time and sent to the corresponding speakers. The software directs the computer’s resources efficiently while allowing a full customization of the cumulative loop.