禪 Zen – 2023
 

Sight-specific mixed media installation (couch, mic, PA system and sound)
Photo above: Installation view, In Another Language exhibition at Ontario Mills, Ontario, CA.

 

The couch and electronic devices of "禪 Zen" surrounded by commercial fashion brands become a spiritual and physical temple, symbolizing Zen Buddhist inquiries on stillness, self-awareness, and transcendence within the world of materialism and consumerism. The installation functions as a noise reducer for the space: Once the mic placed inside the couch intakes noises, then a Max patch reverses the sound frequencies by 180 degrees, and speakers emit destructive interference in real time. This process creates an acoustic barrier around the couch, which separates the resting area from the noises generated within the mall – a demonstration of Zen practice for finding peace within chaos.

The image below shows the Max/MSP patch, which is a visual programming language used for music and multimedia applications. In this project, the software functions as a noise reducer. It is designed to invert the input sound waves and send the output to speakers in real time, canceling the noise sound waves in a limited space around the couch.