‘Necessity’ – Visualising soundscapes

‘Necessity’ was born out of a legacy of self-exploratory work. It draws influence from the technical rigour of information design and data visualisation yet expands into an oeuvre that sees commonality with Conceptual Art, Process Art, and a movement that concerns itself with the quantified self. It embodies a continuity of themes that have been both implicitly and explicitly interrogated over many years of artistic production.

The idea for the series began through conversations around the transference of sound data into visuality. In earlier works, raw sound material takes the form of music recorded by external artists, in Necessity, the raw sound data becomes oral landscapes of the self. As such, the series is an extended visualisation of the unification between sound and two-dimensional form, only working with sonic matter that consistently begins and ends with the artist – at times including one other person, or ambient sounds within the environment. Raw sound material might have included breathing sounds recorded over a night’s sleep, the sounds of a walk across a landscape, or the undulating breaths of shared intimacy.

The resulting series includes eight large-scale fine art prints belonging to a limited edition, each individually signed and numbered. Every piece in the series is available in two colour schemes: a light and a dark version. Two pieces from the series have been acquired by C3 Residency in Mexico City and are now part of its permanent collection. Others are on display at the Shoreditch Arts Club in London and at Einraum in Berlin.

‘Victoria (night)’ and ‘Victoria (dawn)’ have been acquired by C3 Residency in Mexico City and are now part of its permanent collection.

Victoria

Data visualisation of 2:45 minutes of birdsong recorded in Victoria Park, London. Victoria visualises a walk in London’s Victoria Park, taken on a sunny day amidst the sound of human activity, birdsong and other sounds becoming part of the white noise characteristic of an outdoor stroll. This soundscape converted into the pilot piece for the Necessity Collection, its formal characteristics referencing the section of a tree and its concentric circles.

Morpheús

Data visualisation of 6 hours, 46 minutes from one night’s sleep. A few years ago, when Tiziana began struggling with insomnia, she decided to record ambient noises during sleep to determine if external sounds were causing her restless nights. In this pursuit, Morpheus chronicled the sounds and rhythms of breath throughout one night's sleep, using these recordings as a sample to understand habitual sleeping patterns. This investigation into the patterns of a restless sleeper revealed a broken circle representing broken sleep, questioning whether external noises trigger moments of waking or if it is merely the provocation of the unconscious mind. This artwork is currently on display and available for sale at Einraum Berlin.

The Photograph We Never Took

Data visualisation of two voices. This work follows Tiziana’s father's death in 2019 and contemplates their relationship and the loss of her favourite photograph. Retracing this lost photograph prompted her to enlist voice recordings to recreate the image of the bond between them. The sound forms of the two voices join together as two uniting circles, replacing the missing photograph. This artwork has been featured in: Nightingale Magazine issue 2, Page Magazine, Design Matters Copenhagen, Beyond Tellerand Berlin, and part of the group show “Exploring Grief And Loss”, Willesden Gallery London (UK).

Stay There

Data visualisation of 8:27 minutes recording of intimate moments. Capturing the swaying breath of a couple enraptured by their intimacy, Stay There is the only work within the Necessity Collection that includes two identical circles. Representing the proximity of two lovers, the rings do not signify two separate waveforms but embody the physicality of two bodies and sets of breathing. Blurred frequencies emblematise their intertwining, sensual motion, heightened by the deep red colour that stains the canvas with inferred passion. The artwork is currently on display and available for sale (framed) at Einraum Berlin and at Shoreditch Arts Club in London.