Wires has a lot of inspirations, but the idea really began when I combined two things I was interested in: tiny speakers and interactive music. In order to combine these things, I had to find enclosures for the speakers and an excuse for someone to play with a series of them. From there, Wires was born.
In addition to the CYOAA portion of this project, I’ll be doing two workshops. The first will be a journal making project where students will stitch their own art making journals. The second is a speaker making workshop.
A few years back, I created an installation that featured 48 small speakers. I thought the piece was interesting but I also knew that I wanted to do more with them. Later, after discovering the world of arduinos, I started to think a lot about how to give audiences the ability to craft their own sound experiences. Another project explored this using umbrellas.
One other note about this project. When I started building the project, I quickly noticed the amount of stuff that went into building it. Even a small, handmade product like this book involves dozens of sheets of paper, string, chip board, clothe, and electronics. I’ve done as much as I could to source materials for this project that are either reused or recycled. This has included recycled paper, fabric from Austin Creative ReUse, compostable plastic, and rechargeable batteries. As I begin making tangible art, I think its really important that it holds up to the same expectations that I have for every day items I buy.
As I’m writing this, people are buzzing about a new CYOA type story, Black Mirror’s new interactive movie. I think people like to be active participants in art, and technology is making that easier than ever.
