What is SOUNDING?

SOUNDING is an interactive exhibition and a pod of electronically augmented umbrellas creating sounds when they enter ‘electronic oceans’.

Through sound and social interaction the works help us learn about the nearby world of our local sea mammals. We can experience how whales and dolphins use sound to communicate, navigate and find food and how their world is threatened by human activity. Shipping and most recently, seismic blasting used for oil and mineral exploration cause noisy pollution.

SOUNDING was created by Dunedin’s Caro McCaw, West Coast artist Vicki Smith and Taranaki Internet-of-things enthusiast Andrew Hornblow. Together they worked with Otago University whale researchers Professor Liz Slooten,  sound artist Leyton Glen, the Otago Museum team, Otago University Marine Scientists and design students from Otago Polytechnic Tania Turei and Zane Carter. The Vogel Street performance was assisted by artist Katrina Thomson.

The first iteration of SOUNDING was funded by the Dunedin City Council, Creative New Zealand, Deloitte Dunedin, The Monarch Trust and supported by Otago Museum, Otago University, Otago Polytechnic and Aotearoa Digital Artists (ADA) Network.