SOUND TOSSING: Audio Devices in the Context of Street Art

Daniel McNamara

danielmcnamara@alum.calarts.edu

By Reinhard Gupfinger and Martin Kaltenbrunner

Backstory

Sound Tossing is the product of Reinhard Gupfinger and Martin Kaltenbrunner's investigation of outlets for sonic expression in the realm of public art and street-art.

Developed at the University of Arts and Industrial Design Linz, the project draws from prior work from Graffiti Research Labs, and Audio Bombing with the intent of communicating ideas with the public about urban culture.

Presented at NIME 2014

Tech

The Urban Cricket design has precedence but there are multiple designs

Sniffers, which can interpret magnetic or ultrasonic frequencies
Samplers, for broadcasting a specific audio clip
Radios, for broadcasting a radio signal

What it Looks Like

Demo Video 1

Demo Video 2

Strengths

Solar powered allows for somewhat simple remote installation
Conceptually, the projects implemented with the tech are strong
Sniffers detect mosquito devices and translate the noise to a more audible range
Urban Crickets introduce the sound of crickets to urban space to reintroduce a familiar comforting noise
Overall intent is to be more aware of your surroundings

Weaknesses

Street Art is passé?
Street Art comes with a lot of baggage and can be interpreted as preachy
Sustainable power creates technical restrictions
Technical restrictions limit sound output. This is argued as a positive in the paper, but some environments may physically demand more sound output