Upon entering the installation (a small, dark room), the visitor is greeted by a large, cone shaped chair surrounded by rhythmically pulsing ultraviolet lights. They are invited to sit in the chair and upon doing so feel the same rhythm pulsing through their body from the base of the chair. After being granted consent, a device is fitted to their forehead. Upon doing so, the wall in front of them is covered in an animated image, projected from a shelf installed on the wall behind them. As they move their eyes around the wall the image orientation moves. The image constantly seems to shift and change in front of them. They are instructed to relax and try to focus on the sensations they feel through their body. As they relax the image changes more and more, whilst the rhythm of the pulsing light and chair seems to shift slowly over time. When they are ready to leave, the device is removed and they exit, possibly feeling more relaxed and calm than when they entered.

To fit the shaker to the chair, I intend to modify the universal bracket that was delivered with it. I decided on this process after discussing the project with Will Strong of the NewBridge Project, who has experience in metal work having worked on Tom Gray’s piece from last year’s Render, as well as his own undergraduate sculpture work at Newcastle University. Following this meeting, as well as project discussion with Jamie Allen, I decided the optimal setup would be to reinforce the conical frame of the chair with wood, and tightening the spokes with cable ties to solidify the structure. After removing extraneous sections of the bracket through grinding, the bracket would be screwed into the reinforced centre of the dish, effectively creating a vibration pad in the centre of the chair. As the bracket is designed for use with the Buttkicker, the shaker then screws easily into the bracket. This is then tightened with additional washers to optimize the effectiveness of the shaker. For an optimal setup, I would reverse engineer the chair and rebuild it in iron or steel, welding it to ensure maximum structural integrity. However, this would likely be an expensive and lengthy project, so for now I will continue to use the bamboo papasan. Will also suggested I contact Stephen Rowarth, SACS Technician for Newcastle University, as he who would be able to advise me on how to best reinforce the structure of the chair and modify the bracket. I have contacted him and am currently trying to arrange a meeting. If I wanted to explore making the piece in different materials, Rowarth and Strong would likely be very useful for assistance in design and construction.

The cone of the chair is placed on top of a circular base, cupping the bowl of the chair. In the product information for the Buttkicker, the designers suggest building a monitoring platform with rubber feet, separating the shaker from the floor to insulate the vibration. To support the bowl, I considered obtaining an old tractor tyre from a scrap yard, which would cradle the chair and insulate it. Having discussed this idea with Jamie Allen, he suggested instead that I should use a number of tapered feet attached to the original frame whilst firmly attaching the chair to the base via clamps. In the coming months I intend to explore both options, using the strategy that provides the best results: maximum vibration and maximum stability.

The shaker is unpowered, and so must be used in conjunction with a power amplifier. For this piece I intend to use the BKA 1000-4 power amplifier, which is supplied alongside the shaker with the kit I purchased. The amp powers the shaker via a Speakon cable, receiving the signal from the line out on an additional amplifier. For this amplifier, I intend to recondition an old JVC VS-DT6R compact component system, which would then feed the signal to the BKA via the aux out. The signal could be played on VS-DT6R using the inbuilt CD player, or from an Mp3 player via the aux in. Alternatively, I could explore building a bespoke amp, based around an LM386. However, for the sake of ease, I will concentrate on reconditioning the JVC. This amplifier will also connect to a TIP31c transistor, run off the aux out via a cable splitter and customized adapter. This transistor would then be connected to a number of ultra-violet LEDs. By soldering the transistor to a 3.5mm jack and cable, the audio signal from the amplifier amplifies the power running to the LEDs, effectively synchronizing the light and the audio. These LEDs can then be used to decorate the chair, dynamically lighting the piece and arguably amplifying the sense of entrainment. Due to the expense of UV LEDs, another area would be to experiment with hacking UV tube lights, simply installing the transistor into the circuitry in the lights housing. These lights could then be distributed around the chair to light it.

To measure the EEG, I intend to use a BioWave. The sensor is connected via a connector and core wires to the Arduino board in a similar manner to a potentiometer. I will the run the data from the Biowave via Arduino into Processing using the techniques developed in Arduino meets Processing for Webzone.k3. Once I have the EEG data in Processing, I will utilize it in a visualization sketch in a manner similar to earlier audio visualization sketches, developed from Anthony Mattox’s template. To plot the data, I intend to explore fractal techniques explored by Dan Shiffman in Learning Processing, and the Pythagoras Tree code developed by mnt and blindfish on Processing Discourse. The Pythagoras Tree code uses the mouse X location to effect and widen the spiral. When utilized in conjunction with the Biowave, this function could be manipulated through electrooculography (EOG), with the user’s eye movement affecting the appearance of the visual. I would also like to use EEG to manipulate the size of the squares from which the fractal is constructed, similar to my use of audio in my audio visualizers. It could also possibly be used to manipulate colour in a similar manner to the music visualisers. In order to test the EEG unit, I intend to also make use of oscilloscope, as well as the Biowave Max patch. Once I know what sort of data to expect from the EEG, I can begin experimenting with the visual plotting of that data.

To compose the signal, I am currently experimenting with Ableton Live and Cubase. In order to create binaural and monaural beats I am currently working with Operator, the synthesizer that comes with Ableton Live. By creating two versions of the synthesizer, setting the frequency of them slightly apart. The same midi sequence is then sent to both instruments. Whilst the sequence is playing, I will alter the beats by changing the frequency of the synths. To create binaural beats, the two tracks are panned in either direction, one completely to the left and the other to the right. The binaural beats can then be experienced through headphones. When binaural beats are played through a speaker, they become monaural beats. When sending the signal to the Buttkicker, I will send it in mono, panning both tracks in the same direction. As there is no left and right channel when working with a single Buttkicker, there is no left or right channel. In order to create audible monaural beats, I am also considering including speakers in the installation, or alternatively including a set of headphones so that the beats can be experienced binaurally.

As I have managed to gather most of the equipment I plan to utilize in the piece, I plan to spend the next month building the unit and the subsequent months testing and modifying it. This includes experimenting with suspending the chair, modifying the code, developing the composition and examining the aesthetics of the piece as an installation. Thematically, the piece is similar to the ‘Penfield Mood Organ’ of Phillip K Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? There are also themes of engineering, biomechanics and mathematics and divinity. Gothic and the biomechanical are major themes in the work of H R Giger, of whom I am a fan. The visual design of the film Event Horizon also makes use of gothic imagery set alongside advanced technology and engineering. I would like to explore these ideas in the aesthetics of the installation, modifying and decorating the chair and headset so that they are in keeping with the original themes. I plan to make use of parts sourced from scrap yards, including engine parts, piping and industrial cabling. The aim is to make the installation as immersive as possible, in order to heighten the sense of entrainment.

I am also interested in organizing a number of user studies to aid in the development of the piece. These studies would include volunteers from amongst classmates, colleagues and friends, as well as studies conducted with the assistance of the medical community. During my research I contacted professor Janet Wilson at ENT (Ear Nose & Throat) at the Freeman Hospital. She expressed interest in the piece, and in organizing a study involving outpatients in the department. Since the piece effectively provides a visual and tactile representation of sound, a sense of hearing is not necessarily required to appreciate it. Furthermore, this technology has benefits in enabling those with audial disabilities to perceive audio media. Professor Wilson also suggested contacting EEG technician’s with the neuroscience department, who would likely be interested in seeing alternative ways of plotting the data. I am very eager to explore these areas further, as access to medical grade EEG monitoring equipment could provide interesting, high quality data for manipulation within a visual program.  …(Sally’s potential job) also operates a visual stimulation lab, which is an area I would also like to explore. Entrainment techniques and technologies, such as Photic Driving, has been used for anxiety therapy in the past, and there is ongoing research into its use by David Siever, with research conducted into Chronic Fatigue, Chronic Pain, Depression, Hypertension, Premenstrual syndrome and a number of other disorders. I would be interested to learn if the design of the piece would be of use as a therapeutic technology. The BKA 100-4 can operate up to four smaller Buttkicker LFE units, which the Guitammer Company suggest using when setting up home entertainment systems with multiple seats. If the first unit is successful, I would be interested in exploring the idea of multiple units installed as a suite.

With regard to installing the piece for exhibition, I intend to construct a small room using paneling and curtains. This enclosure will then be extensively decorated so that is in keeping with the theme of the installation. I aim to explore these themes of mathematics, engineering, biomechanics, and neurology by covering the walls with scraps of William Morris inspired ‘Binary Wallpaper’ as well as portraits and prints based on retinal photography and x-rays. I intend to source these images myself using my contacts at the hospital as well as my own retinal screening appointments. These images will then be edited in Adobe Photoshop. The installation will also be decorated with machine parts sourced form scrap yards, fibre optic cables and rubber piping. I intend to do much of the invigilation for the piece myself. Given the value of the equipment as well as the potential complexities users might encounter, I feel it would be best to be in attendance as much as possible. For times when I am unavailable, I intend to provide full setup and user instructions for whoever is invigilating at that time.

The design and construction of the piece can be separated into three main projects, which I will examine in the following order:

1.The kinetic sculpture

2.The brainwave reader and visualizer

3. Signal (audio) composition

The first of these, the kinetic sculpture, is a piece designed to provide a visual and tactile representation of the audio signal. To convert the audio signal to visual and tactile stimulus, I intend to use TIP31c transistors as well as a Buttkicker power amplifier and bass shaker. I plan to use the Buttkicker due to its low frequency response, the accuracy of the response, as well as its supposed indestructibility. In my original design, I had intended for the vibrations from the Buttkicker to be conducted via various fluids, creating a visual rendering of the audio signals. These included water, non-Newtonian fluids such as cornstarch and instant custard, and Ferro fluid. I had originally intended to use these fluids after observing numerous audio and cornstarch experiments on YouTube, as well the electromagnetic work of ‪Sachiko Kodama and Yasushi Miyajima. Similar pieces have also been designed by Kiel Long, whose Mindpool combines EEG reading and electromagnetically manipulated Ferro fluid, whilst John Stuart Reid’s Cymascope and the work of Sonic Age America explores sound in the visual medium. Given the number of similar pieces, as well as the expense of Ferro fluid, I decided to explore other options.

I decided to explore the idea of attaching the Buttkicker to a chair. This is one of the intended designs of Buttkicker equipment, which provides extremely low frequency response for home entertainment systems and audio monitoring.  This is achieved by fitting the shaker to a seat, drum stool or monitoring platform. This idea is reminiscent of Nikola Tesla’s experiments with vibration, in one occasion screwing an oscillator to an iron supporting pillar in his laboratory. It also bears some similarities with Ryoji Ikeda’s Matrix for Anechoic Room, which uses a 4.1 channel setup in an anechoic chamber, as well as David Gawthorpe’s home entertainment system, which utilizes a Buttkicker, smoke machine and strobe lights housed in the front section of a Mini. For the chair, I aim to base the structure on a bamboo Papasan chair. When bracketed to the bowl of the Papasan, the piece will resemble a large speaker, in which users are able to sit and experience the signals as tactile sensation. As previously mentioned, the piece also uses transistors to convert sound to light. For this, I intend to utilize a series of circuits containing LEDs and TIP31c transistors, attaching an audio input cable to the transistor. Numerous designers writing for Hack n Mod have explored this idea. Using such a circuit the same audio signal can be used to dynamically light the piece.

The second project of the piece is the brainwave reader. For the piece, I intend to use a BioWave skin surface voltage sensor. I have researched several other potential technologies, such as the Neurosky MindSet, Emotiv EPOC and the OCZ Neural Impulse Actuator. I also researched a number of cheaper units, such as the Uncle Milton Star Wars Force Trainer and Mattel Mindflex. However, after researching the subject on Frontier Nerds and discussing the EPOC and BioWave with Kiel Long and Atau Tanaka, I intend to use the BioWave in my piece. This is due to the ease with which the BioWave can be adapted for use with Arduino, as well as the availability of the unit within Culture Lab. The unit provides EEG, ECG and EMG data, all of which could be of use within the piece, whilst also measuring alpha brainwave activity, which can be supposedly stimulated using binaural and monaural beats.

In visualizing the brainwave activity I intend to use either Processing or MaxMSP. Although I am experienced with both programming languages, my work with Max largely relates to audio work while my work with Processing is visual. I have experimented with data visualization, predominantly working with audio visualization, in Processing, and I intend to explore the programming language further with a new data source. Kiel Long has also explored the area of brainwave visualization, predominantly working in Max. Being written in an identical language to Arduino also makes Processing even more appealing. However, I intend to explore Max further as a tool for data visualization, and will make a final decision at a later date. My previous audio visualization programs have all used an FFT, developed from code by Anthony Mattox. For the purposes of this piece I intend to use a similar method, plotting the data using mathematical and fractal patterns.

The final project is the audio composition, which will serve as the initial signal on which much of the piece is based. In order to promote alpha brainwave activity, I intend to use binaural and monaural beats throughout the composition. There has long been an association between binaural and monaural beats and brainwave entrainment and anxiety therapy. For the composition, I intend to use Cubase and Ableton, being experienced with both pieces of software. I intend to use a combination of sine wave synthesis, manipulated samples, white noise, pink noise and Brownian noise. Pierre Janet observed that observation of a rhythmic pulsing light could show a reduction in anxiety. Given the importance of rhythm and repetition in brainwave entrainment, the piece will be highly rhythmic.

‘Signal Aesthetics’ is a conceptual piece that utilizes elements of sculpture, audio-visual media, human biofeedback manipulation and installation art. The piece aims to examine the notion of human perception as a series of numerical signals. It also examines the application of these signals as creative tools. Furthermore, the piece examines the notion of mathematical aesthetics. Bertrand Russell famously compared mathematics with art and music, describing it as having “a beauty cold and austere…yet sublimely pure, and capable of a stern perfection such as only the greatest art can show.[1]” Through the aesthetic application of mathematical data, the piece aims to serve as an interactive, multi-sensory installation that explores the relationship between perception, signals, mathematics and aesthetics. The piece also aims to reflect on the connection between art and science. In their neurological study of the ‘rules’ of art, Ramachandran and Hirstein identify ‘the principle of visual repetition or ‘rhythm”‘[2], as a further area for research. Given my experience in audio and music visualization, I am experienced with the hypnotic and aesthetically pleasing effects of musical signals presented as rhythmic visuals. My aim in this piece is to explore rhythmic signal stimulus in a multi-sensory capacity, whilst applying my experience with audio visualization to the manipulation of brainwave data

Using a custom built entertainment system, users are able to experience audio signals in a multi-sensory capacity that extends far beyond the traditional capacity of human audio perception. Through creative application of specialist audio monitoring equipment, reconditioned electronic lighting equipment and visual computer programming, the user will be able to see and feel sound that would be otherwise unheard. The piece utilizes techniques associated with audio-visual entrainment, utilizing rhythmic signals in audio and light to attempt brainwave entrainment or synchronization. David Siever has explored the use of audio-visual stimuli to affect cerebral activity as he examined entrainment as a therapeutic tool. Audial, visual and tactile stimuli can be used for brainwave entrainment due to the associated senses connection with the cerebral cortex via the thalamus. However, in the case of tactile stimuli, a sufficiently large area of skin must be exposed to the stimuli for entrainment to be achieved, and thus entrainment tools tend to be limited to the audial and visual medium. Utilizing reconditioned furniture and audio monitoring equipment, I aim to create a piece that explores tactile stimulus as a tool for brainwave entrainment.

There have been numerous experiments into the effect of low frequency oscillation as a therapeutic as well as a military technology. Vladimir Gavreau famously explored the application of infrasound as a destructive force, noticing the nausea that could result from exposure to extreme low frequency oscillation. Such effects have been utilized in audio-visual media, with deep bass tones and infrasound being used to enhance a sense of anticipation in such films as Gaspar Noe’s Irreversible and Oren Peli’s Paranormal Activity. Sarah Angliss and Richard Wiseman’s experiments with infrasound also explore the unnerving psychological effects of infrasound, while Vic Tandy’s The Ghost in the Machine explores physiological effects of extreme low frequencies and the psychological phenomena associated with them. Conversely, there has been much research into the positive effects of exposure to low frequencies. Salimpoor et al’s research into dopamine release during musical stimulus suggests, “…through complex cognitive mechanisms, humans are able to obtain pleasure from music, a highly abstract reward consisting of just a sequence of tones unfolding over time, which is comparable to the pleasure experienced from more basic biological stimuli.[3]” Calabrese et al’s study into the psychological and physiological effects of binaural beats concludes,  ”Binaural beat technology may exhibit positive effect on self-reported (psychological) measures, especially anxiety.” Binaural and monaural beats are often used in audio-visual entrainment. The piece, presented in conjunction with a composition utilizing such audio phenomena, would enable the user to experience such signals as tactile stimulus, whilst also providing a visual interpretation of their changing brain wave activity.

Through the monitoring of brainwave activity whilst utilizing entrainment technology, the piece aims to explore the application of neural biofeedback data as an aesthetic creative tool in an interactive environment. Several practitioners have utilized EEG data as a creative tool in interactive pieces. Kiel Long’s Mindpool utilizes EEG data alongside electromagnetic Ferro fluid “to provide a new tool for performance, philosophical exploration and cognitive experimentation and a source of pleasure generation”[4]. Arturo Vidich, Eric Mika and Sofy Yuditskaya collaborative Mental Block explores brainwave entrainment, attempting to “visualize divergence (or affinity) between two people’s brain waves.”[5] Aldous Huxley explored entrainment, particularly its use in conjunction with psychotropics. In The Doors of Perception, Huxley refers to enriched experience of entrainment when the subject had also taken psychotropics (mescaline and lysergic acid). This bears similarities with work I have done with visuals and the association of dynamic visuals with psychedelia and psychotropic use in the club, rave and festival scene. Although at this time have no interest in exploring the effects of psychotropic substances, I appreciate that my research would likely be of interest to those researching the effects of psychotropic substances in conjunction with dynamic visuals.

Since the 1960s there has been a noticeable semantic shift in the usage of the term ‘psychedelia’ and ‘psychedelic’, with the words now commonly referring to anything associated with hallucinogen use. The word psychedelic, deriving from the Greek noun ‘psyche’  (soul) and verb ‘delouse’ (to manifest), has seemingly become tainted as a research area due to its connection with drug use. In its literal translation, ‘psychedelic’ refers to ‘soul-manifesting’: “the perception of aspects of one’s mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ostensibly ordinary fetters.”[6] Through the application of EEG data to an interactive visual animation, the piece aims to create a literal interpretation of psychedelic art. Users provide EEG data which is manipulated for use within the piece, revealing to them aspects of their own ‘soul’ (or, in my interpretation, their brain and the signals conducted via the central nervous system) utilized as a control within an interactive visual image.

In terms of plotting the data, i.e. applying raw EEG data to a visual sketch, I aim to utilize elements of fractals as well as the Pythagorean theorem, exploring notions of mathematical beauty and elegance. In mathematics, elegance can be measured by the number of proofs associated with a theorem. Elisha Scott Loomis has explored the Pythagorean theorem, publishing over 360 proofs in Pythagorean Proposition. Given the apparent beauty of the theorem as well as the overriding concept of signal aesthetics, I aim to explore such notions of elegance and beauty in my work. Albert Bosman’s Pythagoras Tree is constructed from squares to create a plane fractal seemingly composed of squares and right-angled triangles. I have explored fractals and recursion alongside audio data as a variable in their construction, with results that could be described as ‘psychedelic’ when the term is used in the pejorative sense. For the purpose of this piece, I intend to construct a dynamic visual that utilizes brainwave data as a variable within a mathematically aesthetic visual design to create a literally psychedelic visual piece.

Through the application of signal data and mathematics, and the examination and manipulation of neural biofeedback data, the piece aims to explore notions of human identity and our relationship with signals and mathematics. Many artists have explored the notion of human identity on a neurological level. GV Art aim “to explore and acknowledge the inter-relationship between art and science, and how the areas cross over and inform one another.”[7] Pieces from their recent exhibition Brainstorm, such as Katharine Dowson’s My Soul, and Annie Cattrell’s Inside, address notions of identity in the context of neurology. Famously, Frank Lynn Meshberger noted the similarities in the composition of Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam and the anatomy of the human brain. One could infer from such an interpretation that there is an element of perceived divinity to the human brain. Several practitioners have also identified a degree of divinity in mathematics. The mathematician Paul Erdos identified mathematics as both divine and beautiful, equating mathematical lectures with preaching and identifying mathematics, being the foundation of our understanding of the mechanics of the universe, as a natural candidate for what many religions identify as a deity. By exploring human perception and human neurological activity in a mathematical context, the user is able to experience mathematical signals in a multi-sensory capacity, whilst providing their own signals as a visual counterpoint to the piece.

As mentioned in a previous post, I’m interested in developing a piece that would enable the user to experience audio signals that are on the edge of human audio perception. There are two main issues with such an idea:

1: How do I obtain recordings of these signals for manipulation?

2: How do I provide a way for the user to consciously perceive these signals?

For the purposes of this post, I’m going to discuss the first.

Working with audio, I can immediately think of two ways to obtain these signals. For the first, I could experiment with synthesis, working with raw waveforms and determining pitch as a numerical frequency. This would give me the cleanest audio signal to work with, and has a certain minimalist charm. The second option is to experiment with sampling. Infrasound is produced by a number of sources that I could potentially record. A number of large mammals and reptiles supposedly use infrasound for communication over long distances. I have been interested in recording animals, for observation purposes as well as for use in audio-visual work. Amon Tobin uses a number of animal recordings with interesting effects in his album Foley Room, with the baseline for Big Furry Head being composed from sampled tiger snarls and growls. Although I find the idea of venturing off for a recording session at Edinburgh zoo quite appealing, for the purposes of this piece I think I’ll look elsewhere.

Infrasound is also produced by seismic activity and extreme weather. This would also be an interesting area to explore. Although it would be difficult to record a thunderstorm or earthquake reliably, there are a number of sources for these recordings. In particular, there is the Infrasound Laboratory at the University of Hawaii, which has a number of atmospheric, seismic and oceanic recordings. They also refer to Martin Aaserud and ItrTtistc, an audio “timeline of the physical and emotional events” of a Sumatran earthquake and tsunami.

Much of the work of Vladimir Gavreau focuses on infrasound produced as a result of industrial machinery. Having worked for a brief period on an industrial site, I am fully aware of the level of noise produced as well as the interesting sounds produced by the machinery. I visited the headquarters of The Manthorpe Group in Derbyshire and recorded a number of the machines on site. I managed to obtain a number of interesting recordings that could be manipulated for use in a number of pieces. These included long bass drones recorded from extractor fans and vents, hydraulics which could be used for percussion, as well as a number of robots that provided a treasure trove of weird sounds. Foley Room also makes use of such recording techniques, with Tobin himself commenting on the rhythmic element of machinery and the noises produced by it in the DVD that accompanies the album. This is an interesting idea I would like to explore. Back when I was getting into sic visualization, I noticed a sense of synchronicity between repetitive electronic music and footage of industrial production lines. There is also a noticeable relationship between rhythmic movement and a calming effect on the human body. This should be familiar to anyone who has rocked a baby or ridden as a passenger on long journey in a motor vehicle. A friend suggested that this might also be linked to our time in the womb, and the rhythm of our mothers’ hearts. I haven’t been able to find any research into this particular idea, but I find it quite interesting. I’m also a bit of an H.R. Giger fan and I ended up thinking about bio-mechanical wombs, which is quite an interesting concept given the dark nature of his work and the positive connotations associated with life in the womb.

I’m going to explore synthesis and sampling a little further for now. I’ve done a bit of reading on binaural beats, monaural beats and brainwave entrainment, which might have some quite interesting effects when used in conjunction with an EEG reader. But, for now, I’m going to look into the practicalities of using such low signals.

More to come soon