The Shape of Sound
Cymatics are the visualisation of frequencies and sound. Through the use of sand on top of a metal plate with vibrations being ran through the setup, we are able to see different patterns form as we change the frequency. These visuals begin to introduce us into the world of cymatics and the relationship between sound and image. Design as a tool of education is incredibly important, design has the ability to catch the eye and communicate message we may not be able to through text.
The final outcome was a gift box you may buy at a store such as the Design museum or Museum of Science, the box itself is a simple a3 archival box which stores the contents. In the box you receive a variety of prints all aiming to visualise sound. The prints themselves are all white foiled on a black paper stock with the smaller cards being mounted to a thicker card. The white foil aims to visualise the shimmer of the sand bouncing on the metal plate casting the light off of it in different directions. I hope for the prints to be something you could put around the house and be proud to show and explain the idea behind. The smaller cards aim to be something small and strong you could give to children to play with or look at, or something to have lying round the coffee table.
The project aims to show cymatics at a variety of scales to really allow us as the audience to become lost in the patterns. When we see cymatics in its regular form it can be hard to understand what we are seeing, playing with repetition and scale we are able to gain a better understanding of the beautiful link between sound and image.
