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- Lauren Bickerdike
Lauren
Bickerdike
11,993.4 KM
My practise explores daily life in urban societies through the mechanism of sound. This work stems from audio recordings, which were collected in numerous locations, on recent travels. These recordings expose the background noises of some of the wealthiest cities in Europe and cities in the developing country of Morocco. Through the form of soundscapes, they unmask the similarities and vast differences of public background noise across different continents.
Imagery has become such an influential tool in learning and understanding daily life in communities and cultures around the world. With the use of the internet, and easy access to photographs of cities, impressions are easily formed based on what we see. These soundscapes question the representation and value imagery has on our understanding of societies. Hidden within the array of noise are insights into cultural difference. Socioeconomic and religious factors can be detected. The effects of industrial noise and each society’s adaptation begin to become apparent. Through listening to the soundscapes, familiar to someone thousands of kilometres away, an experience is created that cannot be captured or reproduced by photography.