The Breathing City

The Breathing City was a immersive audio-visual work-in-progress installation at the Sonic Arts Festival, Expo Brighton in July 2008. The installation of The Breathing City was developed by Zschenderlein and Rose based upon the collaborative work with Professor Dr. Janet Barlow of Reading University, Department of Meteorology, exploring relationships between information i.e. scientific data, experience and narrative within the climatic phenomena specifically within urban environments. The exhibition of their audio-visual multi-channel surround sound installation at the Digital Lounge at Lighthouse in Brighton was visited by more than 600 visitors during their two day exhibition in July 2008. As a work in progress,The Breathing Citytakes the form of a multi-channel soundscape composition with interactive data processing that explores the relationship between experiential knowledge and data representations, analysis and interpretation of complex dynamic systems within the context of urban climate. Other directions within this research include multi-sensory access to data through multiple perspectives and conceptual models. The conceptual design of the installation aims to evoke experiences and to provoke conversations that are concerned with complex processes in our urban environment. By using live recorded and processed sounds within the composition, diagrams, images and concepts sourced from direct experience of what occurs in the urban domain, we can begin to share insights into the challenges of understanding localised phenomena within a global context