Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Sargasso - The Audio Described Experience

Yesterday I went to Sargasso by Philip Beesley.  Sargasso is a large scale suspended sculpture on display during the Luminato Festival at the Allen Lambert Galleria in Brookfield Place from June 8 to 18, 2011.  

The instalation is amazing.  


Philip Beesley’s “Sargasso” combines visionary design with high-tech digital engineering to transform a downtown public space – and to offer a glimpse of the potential future of architectural art. A worldwide pioneer in the fast-growing field of responsive architecture, Beesley and his team of collaborators from the disciplines of architecture, engineering, biology, and sculpture use interactive technology to infuse one of Toronto’s busiest spaces with astonishing new life.

As if existing properties of this piece of "living art" aren't awesome enough; and they are, things move in response to your presence, there are little sounds and lights continually participating in the evolution of your experience, this  exhibit is AUDIO DESCRIBED FOR BLIND AND LOW VISION visitors.  You can download the audio file, or, if you have a smart device, you can scan the bar code at the site and play it on your phone.  Pretty cool eh?


The afternoon was beautiful and sunny.  The light in the space was stunning.  My friend and colleague Rose Jacobson and I were blown away by the beauty and genius of the design and application of the piece.  And the audio description mad it even better.  I took some photos (alas, silly me didn't bring a proper camera) on my iPhone, and have put together a little video with the audio for you to share a little of our experience.    This was a pretty quick job, as I want to get it posted ASAP, so people can get down there while Sargasso is still up.  


So, enjoy the soothing voice of audio describer Rebecca Singh on this photo tour of Sargasso.
This video is a creative collage made by artist Wanda Fitzgerald. the
soundtrack is an audio description of the sculpture "Sargasso" and is
intended for use while physically at the sculpture. This audio recording
is being used as "narration" here by special permission from Rebecca
Singh and Theatrelocal.org
 





 








YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pe2YsNcUJNU

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