expanding remnant
sound and light sculpture, 2026
+18Vdc 2.5A, external power supply
300mm x 200mm x 210mm (excluding speakers)
Every few years I like to do a bit of mild self-reinvention, during which I allow myself some time to experiment with different approaches and new ways to generate things I find interesting. expanding remnant is the result of one of those self-reinvention phases, for better or worse. It was prompted by an attempt at creating a set of ‘rules of design’ – almost like some sort of visual serialism – which failed spectacularly (because, sadly, I’m a romantic at heart, and impulses steer most of my artistic directions). This set of ‘rules of design’ included things such as clear color strategy, cool phrases like intersecting bus lines, overhanging electronics, and separated organic and grid wiring. Partially as a consequence of my failure to adhere to these rules, apart from at its inception, this work has truly been the worst experience I have ever had regarding assembly.
Deliberately trying to change my approach, the sound design for expanding remnant was conceived from a patch on my modular synthesizer, transferred to a fully functioning breadboard sketch, and digitally modelled with the ill-fated ‘rules of design’ in mind. Ten years ago, my practice revolved around a sort of transparency between the circuit and the onlooker, where the abstract process within a circuit was meant to be laid bare to the audience for everyone to understand. Recently, I’ve realized that this, while good on paper, is an idealistic point of departure. In this project, I decided to forgo the ‘freeform electronics’ and compartmentalize the various modules within the circuit, instead focusing on the routing of discrete signals between circuit blocks. Additionally, this is the first project where I’ve omitted an internal speaker, instead opting for two speakers (stereo) externally.
