Volume

Just back from Melbourne, where I came across VOLUME, a fantastic installation in Federation Square.

The installation is the brain-child of the UK's United Visual Artists, known for their work with U2, Massive Attack, The Arctic Monkeys and others. With a soundtrack arranged by Neil Davidge and Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack, this incredible fusion of light and sound is realized through a forest of luminous LED columns which light up Federation Square.

The columns respond spectacularly to human movement and visitors walk, crawl, jump and dance their way through this interactive installation.

The first installation was performed in the UK at the Victoria & Albert Royal Museum's John Madejski Garden last winter 2006, with a wonderful video posted here:


VOLUME is part of a series in 'The Light in Winter', Federation Square's annual winter festival for Melbourne centred around light. Directed by Robyn Archer, The Light in Winter brings together artists, designers and communities to explore their ideas of light, enlightenment and hope.

For more 2009 Light in Winter events, see their program, here.

Sonic Bablyon

We welcome back to Brisbane, New Yorker internet music pioneers William Duckworth and Nora Farrel who were with us for the iOrpheus project in 1997.



This time, they're here to inaugurate a multi-year project titled Sonic Babylon, an art project planting gardens of sound around the world; invisible gardens hanging in the air and heard on mobile devices when visitors pass through.


Occuring from July to September 2009, these gardens include the Queensland Conservatorium Research Centre's Media Gardens in Queensland (Cairns, Noosa, and South Bank), The National Film and Sound Archive's Permanent Sound Garden and National Sound Day 2009 in Canberra, and a Sound Garden Happening at the Apple Store in Melbourne (tbc, September).


Tweets at timecurve (Bill), hypnotone (Nora) and sonicbablyon.