David Haines (UK), Joyce Hinterding (AU)
http://www.sunvalleyresearch.net

Award of Distinction Hybrid Art
Installation

“Earthstar” is an exploration of electromagnetic and vibrational energy and employs the rigorous methodologies and tools of science, but its overall effect is a poetically charged experience that ultimately emphasizes the sun’s elemental and mythic qualities.

Exploring arcane energies and hidden frequencies, the installation comprises three elements: A formal dynamic space is established between the singular and spectacular footage of the solar chromo-sphere captured by the artists using a hydrogen-alpha telescope. Sitting in opposition to this are two luminous refrigeration units containing virtual aroma compositions of synthesized molecules that represent states of ozone. Building a bridge between these two elements is a resonating and receiving system of VLF (Very Low Frequency) antennae tuned to the radio bursts emitted by the sun and fed through an amplifier to provide a real-time, immersive soundtrack.

A super atmosphere is established in the installation, by way of imaginative representations of the sun and the solar winds, and via synthetic aroma molecules that smell ozonic. Ozone has a smell. It is what we smell before a thunderstorm. It’s the smell of electricity due to burning ions. But the excess of ionized air is also the smell of a fresh sea breeze near the ocean. These accords of synthesized molecules created by the artists explore and develop recent research that postulates that smell like hearing and seeing is defined by being able to discern the frequencies of molecular spin as smell.

The custom-built antennae sculptures act like radio-astronomy antennae. These hand-wound antenna constrained by audio filters resonate to the section of the electromagnetic spectrum known as the VLF (3 KHz to 30 KHz). VLF is the Very Low Frequency range of the spectrum and is dominated by solar noise and the effects of the solar winds on our atmosphere. This frequency range translates directly into audio through basic audio inputs so that we are able literally to listen to the sympathetic activity in the wire object.

Support by Marco Macon, IASKA (International Art Space, Kellerberrin, WA) and the C3 West project in the early development of this work.