In No Small Measure

Raewyn Turner & Brian Harris 2024

‘In no Small Measure’ expresses changes in atmospheric  humidity. The five towers made from tree branches and human hair speak to each other as a community of fragile sentinels responding to humidity and to itself, building, when undisturbed, chords of sound. 

We dried and steam bent plum tree branches into curves and pairs were mechanically joined by a strain sensor. Data from the stretching hair is interpreted to generate a synthesised sound spectral envelope.

A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture. For every one degree Celsius of global warming the atmosphere holds seven percent more water vapour.

The local signals of humidity are captured by the hair.

The stretching and contraction of the hair causes miniscule flexing of the branches which initiate electrical signals from the strain gauge sensors.

The subtly changing electrical signals are input into a Lorenz attractor function running on a microprocessor modelling convection in the earth's atmosphere which generates non-periodic and non-repetitive outputs which synthesize into audio. The generative output is synthesized into piano notes.

The subtly changing electrical signals are input into a Lorenz attractor function running on a microprocessor modelling convection in the earth's atmosphere which generates non-periodic and non-repetitive outputs which synthesize into audio. The generative output is synthesized into piano notes.

1. In No Small Measure: By Raewyn Turner and Brian Harris

Published in PUBLIC Journal

Source: Public, Volume 35, Issue 70, Oct 2024, p. 84 - 89

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1386/public_00212_1

Language: English

Published online: 29 Nov 2024

• In No Small Measure By Raewyn Turner and Brian Harris

Finalist Parkin Drawing Prize, NZ. https://parkinprize.nz/