Site-specific Installation with Aeolian Harp, FM transmitter and Spectral Visualization, Museo de la Ciudad de Querétaro, 2022
Project Description
Interfaces of the Invisible (Interfaces de lo Invisible) is a cross-disciplinary project that emphasizes the ability of artistic practices to bridge scientific knowledge with personal experiences in tackling ecological challenges. It has been developed collaboratively by Taiwanese artist Po-Hao Chi and Mexican artist Chucho Ocampo. This project focuses on environmental perception and climate emergencies, building on the ecological discussions that began with the 2021 project “Plastic Soup.” The artists explore how the unseen aspects of the environment can be transformed into perceptible experiences through sound, data translation, and embodied practices.
The project was developed across diverse geographic contexts, including the semi-desert landscape of Zimapán and the urban environment of Querétaro, Mexico, creating dialogues between these locales and Taiwan’s humid island ecology to explore ecological phenomena at multiple scales and through varying local conditions. It encourages audiences to rethink their relationship with the environment, fostering awareness and critical reflection through sensory experiences.
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- Installing the wind harp on the patio of the museum.
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- Installation View at the Museum Patio
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- Objects and documentation in the exhibition room.
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- Spectrum visualization from the wind harp recording and the georadar.
Central to the exhibition is an atmospheric instrument installed in the museum’s courtyard—an 8-meter-long Aeolian harp whose strings vibrate with the wind, resonating through a hollow metal tube and transmitted via FM radio waves into the exhibition room. These signals interact with georadar-generated images, revealing connections between atmospheric phenomena and geological processes such as sedimentation, erosion, and water cycles.
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- Opening event of the exhibition.
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- Outdoor sound installation suspending in the museum courtyard.
Public Workshops
Urban Explorations with Aeolian Harps and Georadar
We invited participants to re-experience urban spaces through a sensory-driven perspective. During guided walks in Querétaro, participants use DIY Aeolian harps, seeking locations with suitable wind conditions to activate the instruments. This practice encourages participants to navigate the urban environment differently, sharpening their perception of wind patterns and subtle atmospheric phenomena. Following the walks, participants engage in group reflection sessions, transforming their collected sensory experiences into discussions on the environmental conditions and ecological contexts of their city.
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- Tracing the wind in Querétaro City.
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- Walking with the DIY windharp.
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- Participants translating sensory experiences into drawings after windharp walking session.
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- Auditory drawings of urban sounds and Aeolian harp resonance.
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- UNAM’s research introduces georadar technology.
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- Guided tour of the exhibit.
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- Demonstration of the georadar at the museum patio.
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- Display of georadar detection on the vehicle’s screen
Collaboration with researchers from the Geoscience Center at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) introduced georadar as an alternative tool for understanding imperceptible environmental conditions. They guided artists and participants in interpreting georadar frequency spectra, connecting underground geological data with atmospheric phenomena captured by the Aeolian harp, fostering a dialogue between subsurface insights and aboveground environmental conditions, enriching the artistic representation of invisible dynamics.
Testing the aeolianharp prototype in Zimapán, Mexico.
作品介紹
《無形介面》是融聲創意團隊與墨西哥跨域實驗室 dériveLAB 與創意空間 BEMA 合作的跨域創作項目，由台灣藝術家紀柏豪及墨西哥藝術家 Chucho Ocampo 合作發展作品。此計畫延續了2021年由台灣文化部拉美交流補助支持的《塑膠湯》計畫，關注於環境感知及身體經驗。團隊在墨西哥各地走訪並開發裝置原型，並配合展覽舉辦了以「漫步」為主題的工作坊，分別將地質探測儀及自製風弦琴帶至克雷塔羅市區街道與參與者們一同行走，並記錄周遭環境狀態，再經由頻譜分析、聲音化等方式轉譯為感官體驗。
此計畫目標是讓大眾更容易理解環境尺度的變化，以縮減訊息規模和訊息接收者之間的間距。今日諸多既有技術、文學甚至電視劇集等媒體，正試圖向人群解釋環境問題。它被稱為人類世、資本世、氣候變化、全球暖化、第三次滅絕等，但人們對於這些緊急的變化，儘管看到了圖表、報告、新聞，或者親身經歷過，仍需要更多反思或採取相應行動。而造成這種差距的原因，包括資訊轉換的不可估量性，或者技術與數據的視覺化程度。因此，《無形介面》試圖通過當代藝術方法論和新興技術，重新理解、認識這種氣候緊急情況。
本計畫亦與墨西哥自治大學地球科學中心實驗室（Geoscience Center, Universidad Autonoma de Mexico）合作，以克雷塔羅市博物館（Museo de la Ciudad de Querétaro）為中心進行地質探勘。在創作及研究過程，藝術家們思考如何將自然界中的身體感知轉譯為藝術性表達，或以聲音為媒介，傾聽、思考環境的無形層面，將艱澀的數據科學、環境感測做另類轉譯，促使大眾對環境尺度產生新的理解。此外，透過跨學科的實驗、工具技術交流，展覽和公眾活動邀請觀眾透過聆聽和漫步，使用地質探測器和DIY風琴收集環境數據，探索身體對自然的感知如何轉化為藝術表達，一同思考人類在塑造環境未來和促進與地球的永續關係中所扮演的角色。
Exhibition poster
Credits
- Supported by: Taiwan National Culture and Arts Foundation, Sistema de Apoyos a la Creación y Proyectos Culturales (SACPC), Secretaría de Cultura de México
- Artists and Creative Team: Po-Hao Chi, Chucho Ocampo, ZONESOUND CREATIVE, dériveLAB, BEMA
- In Collaboration with: Museo de la Ciudad de Querétaro, Secretaría de Cultura del Municipio de Querétaro, Gobierno Municipal de Querétaro
- Academic Partner: Centro de Geociencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
- Venue: Museo de la Ciudad de Querétaro