Freya Alexander
An Urban Conch
This piece :
The sea-shell in reverse The anti-shell
The anti- city
This is our ‘natural’ soundscape.
A constant backdrop
We are bombarded by an unrelenting, eerie hum of vehicles in continual motion .
Our ears are strained ; we crave silence, quiet, solitude. But we have become dependent on its existence.
It mimics the swell of the seashore so that we are at times lulled into a sense of safety , comfortability, surety as if we were sleeping by the sea.
I wanted to recreate this reality in the wildlife garden, a unique space of solitude and wilderness in the city. Even in this slow space, green escape, we are reminded of the noise, speed, chaos outside.
Here , though, the sounds are contained, and you can CHOOSE to engage and listen.
