Perceptual Ecologies Mine” is a responsive art installation featured at the international art festival Port20:10.

The artwork consists of 35 electro-acoustic drums suspended from white trees planted in an old limestone quarry. These drums are designed as sensing “sound instruments” that are triggered by motion in their immediate environment. When disturbed, the drums send messages to their neighbors, creating waves of silence that travel through the mine’s corridors. Conversely, if visitors interact passionately and exhibit collective behavior, the behavioral code of the drums shifts, leading to more playful interactions and the emergence of collaborative global patterns within the mine.

Initially, any disturbance “scares” the instruments and disrupts the composition. However, over time, the installation’s sensitivity changes, becoming more eager to initiate playful stimulations. The composition progresses through four stages, each with its own behavioral code. The final stage, the ‘grand finale,’ features a dramatic display where flowing liquid from containers at the tops of the trees hits the drum skins, creating illuminating harmonic patterns.

Read the full description in the book:  Worldmaking as Techné: Participatory Art, Music, and Architecture Riverside Architectural Press

Location

The art installation was exhibited from October 15, 2010 – January 15, 2011. in  Tingbæk limestone mines, Denmark

Team

Esben Bala Skouboe, Christian Skjødt, Dan Overholdt, Mads Brath, Tobias Tyrrestrup, Lars Knudsen

Support

PORT 20:10, The Danish Art Council