Y3 Project 1 | Synaescape. 2 Week Group Project

About project

UNIT 1A
Tutors: Alisdair Russell, Stuart Buckenham
Group: Shogo Suzuki (Y3), Sam Robinson (Y3), Raluca Burlacu (Y2), Boyan Hristov (Y2)

As a group we are interested with the soundscape of Elephant and Castle. The auditory framework of the area mirrors the state of flux that it finds itself in. The mighty Heygate Estate is gone laying the foundations for the regeneration of the whole area over a 20 year period. In this period of transition how will the soundscape change?

‘….these listening monoliths were spared and left to stand, solemnly eavesdropping on the sounds of Dungeness into the next century.’- Tacita Dean (Sound Mirrors//1999)

Through exploring the evolution of the soundscape we also look to how the auditory footprint is retained within the fabric of its buildings. The area was bombed heavily over both world wars yet the viaduct built in 1863 is still standing, the main nervous system of the area. Its fabric is saturated with the Elephant and castle’s memories of the places. How can we tap into these memories?

Pallasmaa strikes a chord with us; ‘[buildings] enable us to see and understand the passing of history and to participate in time cycles that surpass individual life.’ Moreover, hearing creates a sense of connection to a place whereas ‘…sight is a sense for the solitary observer.’ We want to interact with the soundscape, form a connection with it. How does the transitory conditions of Elephant and Castle effect the soundscape- can we effect the existing soundscape; harness it and transform it into something else?

We started to explore the idea of visualising sound. How you can dissect sound with software, isolate parts. We began to look at sound as something experiential, something phenomenological. This is where we came across the condition of synaesthesia; where a stimulus in one modality creates an inherent sensation in another modality. We are focusing on the connections between the visual and auditory modalities in this project.