Is it possible to display urban noise as a real-time sound sculpture? Art installation developed by the Analema Group over the last two years invited the audience to experience urban sound from around the Tate as trajectories of sound, travelling through the space of Tate Exchange at Tate Modern. Four real-time streams, from construction noise, to railroad tracks were visualised on the panoramic windows of the Tate’s monumental architecture. Through direct experience, the audience learned about the effects of noise, while shaping and designing their own soundscape.

The multi-sensory art installation was available to visitors of the Tate Exchange London in November 2019. The Analema Group, a collective operating between art, technology and science, specialises on immersive experiences. At Tate Exchange, the idea was to present alternate forms of sound experiences. The exhibition was also flanked by a rich program of talks, and a workshop with high uptake by scientists, other artists, and local communities.

“We want local communities to understand the effect of noise on their health, on their social behaviour, their lives, but also encourage creative thinking so that local communities can help themselves better,” explains Oliver Gingrich at Analema. “At Bankside, where Tate is located, more than 13,000 people are exposed to noise levels that easily reach 80db. The Thames amplifies these sounds, yet local communities can only help themselves, if they understand the impact of noise.”

AccuCities was one of the technological partners of the project, providing high detail 3D model of the Tate Modern part of London. This 3D model enabled Analema Group’s artists to accurately display noise on the walls of buildings surrounding the gallery.

“We support hundreds of students, experimenters and artists every year with our 3D models. But I’ll be honest, when we agreed to provide our 3D city model for this project we couldn’t really visualise how the Analema Group will use our 3D London model in this project,” admits Sandor Petroczi from AccuCities. “Although our customers find ever more imaginative ways of using our 3D city models, we have never come across this idea. However, to say that we were pleased with the results would be an understatement. The exhibition was beautifully done, was incredibly well received and we are really happy that we could be part of it.”

This spectacular multi-sensory experience that will now travel abroad. KIMA: Noise will soon open at the Geneva Museum of Electronic Art as part of Electron Festival and hopefully soon be seen elsewhere across Europe. The collective has just published their first book on the subject and is currently preparing KIMA: Noise – the film. Together, these activities help to raise awareness for a pressing issue of our time, while providing a participatory art experience, where the audience can see, hear and feel the noises around them.