Nature Blending with Engineered: First Proposal

Individual Micro-broadcasters

I would like to propose a project where a bus or an individual can become an Individual Micro-broadcaster. This project will be installed at Kennedy Plaza in Providence, RI. My intentions are to examine the possibilities of the bus becoming the receiving unit for public messages or the Plaza as the receiving unit. I would also like to further explore the idea of an urban soundscape, specifically dealing with Kennedy Plaza and the use of communication as an outlet for boredom while waiting for the bus.

My interest in individual micro-broadcasting started with an interest in how media ownership in the USA is transferring to a smaller and smaller ownership pool at the same time mobile technology like mp3 players are becoming more common. I’m interested in understanding what role technologies like FM radio will have in the future. I am also interested how the public can take an easily accessible technology like FM and use it in a new way that will foster community involvement, ability to share ones voice and have new social networks emerge from a broadcast.

My initial research will be on past projects that deal with sound gathering and broadcasting, pirate radio, mobile sound, community interaction, and public speech. One site that I would like to explore more is free103point9. They list a variety of interesting past projects including their Tune(In))) series that takes place in various cities. This series has performers play into transmitters and the signal is then broadcast and listened by individual radio headsets. Another interesting project listed on the site is Radio 4x4. This project has four performers creating four separate simultaneous audio performances that are mixed by the audience members moving about to the various feeds.

In dealing with mobile listening devices more research on listening habits will be fulfilled through reading Michael Bull’s Sounding Out The City. From initial browsing I am interested in exploring how personal listening devices can serve as “auditory mnemonic” to aid users in constructing a sense of narrative or “pleasurable coherence” within urban spaces. With mobile listening it gives one the ability to not only block out urban spaces, but also people, and can be used as a strategy to avoid verbal interaction without breaking the “gaze.”

From my research I hope to be able to design a project that will deal with Kennedy Plaza in Providence, RI. I chose Kennedy Plaza because of the high amount of public traffic the site gets from individuals that are in transition, or mobile. From site visits the area attracts a variety of people from all over Rhode Island. RIPTA busses come and go routinely, reaching out to many cities as far as Newport. In addition, Kennedy Plaza serves as the Greyhound and Bonanza bus stations for Providence bringing people from many other states. One interesting design element of Kennedy Plaza is that the ratio of indoor to outdoor space is unusual for a traditional bus station. At most there are about 20-30 seats inside on benches with limited standing room. This dynamic causes Kennedy Plaza to be and area where numerous groups congregate outside. These groups range from homeless people, to high school and college students, to smokers, to mothers and children.

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