Colony
The climate crisis has impacted bee colonies greatly across the world, yet bees are essential to the survival of the human race. By bringing the sounds of bees into the gallery space, and through sensory immersion, perhaps attention can be drawn to the rich and beautiful sonicity of this species and therefore encourage conservation of an important creature that is often overlooked.
Audience members are encouraged to walk along a simulated corridor outlined by speaker and computer fan hybrids that are hung either side and above their heads. Disembodied bees fly around the array, activating the fans and producing air movement like that of a bee’s wings. Recordings of a beehive are automatically diffused around the speaker/fan array by MaxMsp. The fans are controlled by Arduinos, with the speed of the fan relating to the amplitude of the sound in the corresponding speaker; the louder the sound, the faster the fan spins.