In Conclusion

As our year draws to a close, we are required to gather together the best parts of our work to form a final portfolio for grading and exhibition purposes. Because my work deals with sound and resonance I decided to build a container for my portfolio that could also play audio samples of my work to hopefully impart a better understanding of my project.

As I reflect on the last year, I can't help thinking about the future... I'd like to make more of these resonators and other devices that could possibly interact with each other in a space. I think it would be a compelling installation as well as an interesting investigation into two of my ongoing obsessions - feedback and resonance - but maybe with an interactive layer as well. What ever I end up making, I will be sure to continue documenting my work with this blog.

Resonance Inductors

Watch this video to see and hear the resonance inductors in action.

Proof of Concept

As a proof of concept model, these resonators are not only demonstrative of acoustic resonance in tube environments, they also incorporate previous streams of my research from the first term such as feedback and sound transference.

A small dc motor - nearly silent when running alone - is embedded into the inner surface of the steel drum. The rotation cycle of the motor is affected by a small offset weight attached to its axis causing it to oscillate. The vibrations caused by this oscillation are transferred to the steel causing the entire drum to vibrate. Sound waves in the acoustic space begin to build at the drum’s resonant frequency and its various modes. The result is an exponential amplification of the motor’s oscillation into audible sound of a substantial volume. In the same tank, a microphone picks up the vibrations and sends them to an FM transmitter. The sound is then picked up by an FM receiver contained in the second tank. This signal is amplified and output through a speaker embedded into the interior surface of the second drum. These devices transfer the sound produced in the first drum into the second drum causing it to vibrate at the same frequency.

As both resonators operate at the same frequency, their minute imperfections and differences come into play. Since the drums are not resonating at the exact same frequency because they are not perfectly identical, their sounds overlap, superimposing both resonant signatures to create overtones. These sounds are interpreted as a composite resonance, causing a third “ghost” acoustic space that does not actually exist in the material world, but can be heard nonetheless.

Motive Power

Here are sketches of some machines I could possibly use to move the tanks around the site and perform other heavy tasks. As always, clicking on the image will bring up a larger version.


The above drawing is a simple hand winch. The human force exerted in turning the crank is essentially amplified by a system of gears turning a drum that winds up a line with a load on it. These winches were commonly used by fishermen and other seafaring folk to pull their craft ashore.


This is an exploded view of a simplified Stirling engine made out of scrap metal. This engine can be made quite easily out of scavenged materials and uses little to no fuel. The engine runs on pressure differentials caused by vacuum chambers of alternating hot and cold air that drive a piston. The linear motion produced by the piston can then be used to drive a flywheel and any number of light duty machines. Since the difference in temperature necessary to run the engine is a very small ratio, it can run on solar radiation, geothermal heat, body heat and even small amounts of ice.


This winch runs on steam power. I find steam engines fascinating not only because of their history but there are many beautifully designed engines out there. Steam engines seem to occupy a period of history in which the craft of a machine was as important as its technology. Anyway, this engine may be a bit large for the winch it powers but perhaps one could hook up a variety of mechanical devices to its driveshaft to perform many tasks at once. Maybe the winch could be a part of a larger crane assembly that could actually lift the tanks off the ground so they could be stacked on top of one another.


Finally, this design is the most far-fetched but would also prove to be a most versatile tool for the site. The steam engine powers a tank-like vehicle with a substantial frame on the front to push the tanks around the site. I don't think I will pursue this idea but it was fun to draw.

Sketchy Ideas

Lately I have been concentrating on the architectural side of the project. I've put the oil drums on the backburner for now so I can start negotiating the tanks on site. I've sketched out a few preliminary ideas: a simple wood structure could be used to prop up the tanks, elevate them and position them vertically. This wood could be scavenged from the site and nearby.

I looked at the tank as a modular unit - since they are all of similar dimensions I could perhaps build a series of connectors that anchor the tanks and allow them to be stacked and elevated. This system would allow an ongoing reconfiguration of the units to suit the users' needs in their acoustic experimentation. I began looking at the work of Cedric Price as inspiration for this new direction. One of his most famous theoretical works, Fun Palace, was an ever-evolving user-defined environment consisting of movable units within a modular framework. Some of his less developed work involved machinery to move units around the site. I then had the idea to incorporate a crane into the site that could move about and displace the tanks by employing a large electromagnet, like those used in scrap metal lots.

While this idea seems like a clean, effective solution to organize a collection of modular units, what if the units are not truly modular? Although the tanks are all similar in form, they are all unique characters that contribute their own individuality to the site. The tanks have many different components inside them, and each one exists in a unique state of decay. Rust, graffiti, erosion, modification all add to the persona of each individual. Therefore, although transportable, they are not interchangeable and must be acknowledged as such. Surely each one possesses its own unique acoustic properties and it would be a shame to overlook them.

Additionally, I have reconsidered the crane in favor of a more diy solution to move the tanks. Since there is a lot of abandoned machinery lying around the site, it could be reclaimed to build new machines for moving the tanks. Thus, I have been researching victorian machinery, steam engines, stirling engines and various mechanical automata. This pursuit, if fruitful, will make a nice connection back to the beginning of the project and the Artobolevski machines I started with in September.

[sketches forthcoming]

Steel Drumming

This video shows an attempt to realize the many sounds that can possibly be generated by the material of the drum itself. By touching the drum and playing it as a percussion instrument with my hands I am developing a sonic/haptic relationship with the object. I found that the drum has one obvious resonant frequency with many overtones that can be heard depending on how it is played.

My next step involves the development of a series of devices to integrate into the drums. The devices are extensions of my previous work applied to the barrels. Simultaneously, I am developing a hypothetical structural system to support the tanks on the site. This structure will also be expressed at the scale of the drums. The final result will be an interactive proof of concept that will exist in a space alongside representational and technical drawings of the project on site.

Tube Acoustics

I've been drawing the steel drums I acquired in an attempt to assess their acoustic potential. I've also been reading about the acoustic properties of tubes. Pretty dry stuff, but it explains some of the phenomena I experienced in the tank at the Point Douglas site. For example, I now understand why the tank seems to be more resonant in some places than in others. It has to do with pressure differences in the longitudinal waves created in the column of air inside the tube. In a closed-open tube, the lowest pressure occurs at the open end. I have some wave diagrams of both the tank and the drum. Since the tank's proportions are of a 1:2 ratio and the drum's are 1:1.5 they have slightly different resonant properties. However their acoustics are essentially the same because they are both open-closed tubes.

Sweet Cans

I acquired these excellent steel oil drums from Western Scrap Metal in Point Douglas. These 45 gallon barrels will be my new substrate(s). Since their materiality and proportion is very similar to my original substrate they will function perfectly as a scaled-down version of the large tank. I highly recommend Western Scrap to anyone looking for similar materials. They were very friendly and helpful and are apparently quite fond of artists.

PhotoMoto Schematic

This is the schematic diagram of the circuit I used for the dc motor array controlled by photoresistors.