Young Artist of the Year
Tampere Art Museum
1997
Electromagnet installation
Steel sheets, stainless-steel rods, electromagnets, control unit, infrared sensors, power supply
Nine sand-blasted steel sheets hang from the ceiling of the exhibition space. Electromagnets, stuck to the
under
surface of each steel sheet, are connected to an infrared sensor via a control unit. When a sensor detects a
human presence, the control box begins rapidly switching the electric current to the magnet on and off. When
the
current is turned off, the magnet begins to fall, and is then pulled back when the current is switched on
again.
This continues endlessly and makes the sheet resonate. The frequency becomes constantly higher when the sensor
is activated, and slowly drops out of the audible range when it is de-activated. The public's movements cause
the nine sheets – each one in a different phase – to create a constantly altering soundscape in
the
exhibition
space.
Dimensions variable