surface 02, HeHe.org: Pollstream
HeHe.org (alias Helen Evans and Heiko Hansen) will demonstrate their ongoing research project Pollstream which speculates on the ways in which our perception of pollution is altered. Is pollution something which is artificial, human made, or something extra within our being' which we add to the natural world?
Pink Noise; photo: Jan Sprij
Even if we consider emissions, waste and all other "synthetic" overflows as not being natural they are still part of the same system. From coloring the clouds of chimney emissions, to the activation of bar lamps that signal the presence of tobacco smoke, or confronting advertising panels that listen for noise, Pollstream invites the audience to explore their urban environment in the context of creating and monitoring real-time pollution.
Their interactive light installation Pink Noise (Bruit rose in French) in Witte de Withstraat, is based on the musical term that describes a random electronic noise across all sound frequencies which are tolerable for the human ear. HeHe first installed Pink Noise in a Paris suburb in 2004 as a project to examine 'noise pollution'. Within a street light box normally used for advertising, the work adds a function that is inspired by street activities. It visualizes the ambient sounds in the environment as well as sounds deliberately made by passers-by. With an animated visual surface, Pink Noise essentially advertises the existence of noise pollution.
