Damien Robinson and Stuart Bowditch
Vibe³ (Vibe Cube)
Vibe³ (Vibe Cube) is a sonic installation with both virtual and actual forms, incorporating collected, donated, and archived sounds that express the genius loci, or ‘spirit of place’ of the area in which it is exhibited.
The sound ecology of a location is an intangible, ephemeral and - due to familiarity - an often overlooked facet of our environment; Vibe Cube aims to showcase the extraordinary nature of the familiar.
During the initial development phase, residents of the three towns, Basildon, Colchester and Harlow are invited to submit both recordings and ideas for recording sounds which they feel reflect the history, character, and the unique feel of the area – anything from wildlife to nightlife. These will be collected by Stuart and Damien via a web-based 'drop site' and redeveloped into an ever-changing digital programme played back via the Vibe Cube at locations in the towns. It will also accessible via the Vibe Cube/Open Space website.
The Vibe Cube itself is not just a sound experience; using an innovative form of technology, it becomes a resonating instrument where sounds can be experienced by touch as well as heard.
As well as the public submissions, the artists are collecting foundsounds and researching the sound archives at the Essex Sound and Video Archive. At the end of the project, recordings will be donated to the Archive, where they will help to form a more detailed picture of Essex, what it is like now and how it is changing.
Get involved
Do you live or work in Colchester, Harlow or Basildon?
If so, we want you to take part in Vibe³.
Is there is anything that you feel that captures the spirit of the place where you live, now or in the past?
Then we would like you to contribute it to our project.
How do I get involved?
You can contribute in several ways by:
- submitting a sound or comment you've recorded on your phone or other recording device – it could be a poem you have written, a song, a field recording you have made.
- suggesting a sound that we can record for you, or source a sound you remember that isn't heard any more.
As well as the public submissions, we will be collecting foundsounds ourselves.
How do I donate a sound, or suggestion?
You can also send information in a number of ways, so don't worry if you don't have a computer or a recording device. You can drop your file by clicking the “Add files” button on the left of this page. †
Phone: 0844 3578387
(Calls from a standard BT landline line cost 4.25 pence per minute (peak, evening or weekend). You'll be asked to leave a voicemail message so your call will be recorded. ‡
† By clicking on the ‘Drop It!’ button, you consent to us using the file, in part or whole, in the Vibe³ Genius Loci art project, and also to it being donated to the Essex Sound Archive.
‡ By leaving your message, you consent to us using the file, in part or whole, in the Vibe³ Genius Loci art project, and also to it being donated to the Essex Sound Archive.
How will the sounds be used?
Over the next 6 months these sounds and recordings will be transformed into a sound-based artwork that will be exhibited in each of the three towns, as well as a version on this website – and your contribution could be included in the finished piece.
We will also be donating content to the Essex Sound and Video Archive, where it will help to form a more detailed historical picture of our county, what it is like now and how it is changing.
What's been recorded/donated already
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About Damien and Stuart
Damien Robinson and Stuart Bowditch began collaborating in 2005, drawn together by their mutual interest in sound and accessibility. They have worked together on a number of successful projects including the Ambient Weather Sound Machine (which uses foundsounds, triggered by the weather on recycled and found technologies to recreate environmental sound and feelscapes), and the Carousel soundscape for Steam Control. They like creating interventions in unusual sites to draw in audiences who might not consider themselves ‘interested in art’, and projects have been shown on sites including a nature reserve, a music festival, an electronics store, and a hotel/night club. At the same time they have maintained their independent practice.
Damien Robinson is an artist working with digital media focusing on the interplay between images, sounds and vibrations. Her practice includes a focus on 'feel-sound', and examines the relationship between sound and vibration (which she describes as ‘hearsound’ and ‘feelsound’ respectively), examining how sounds can be experienced through touch and bodily resonance in contrast to conventional hearing.
Stuart Bowditch is a musician and artist who works with sounds that he finds in public spaces and everyday places. He describes his musical works as trying to “...make sense of the discordant, disjointed busy world around me and make some sense of what is going on, to have some kind of understanding about what makes the world revolve, how things all have their place within the environment and how they all seemingly work together. But most importantly, how I fit in to the world as a whole and to try to have a place within it which has some semblance of order and harmony.”
View Damien and Stuart's Diary
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AWSoM (Ambient Weather Sound Machine), installation using found-sounds triggered by the weather on recycled and found technologies.
