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Last Friday I went to the V&A's blockbuster exhibition 'David Bowie is'. This post notes how I found the viewing experience different/interrupted, as a result of the designed sound experience. Perhaps reflective of David Bowie's musical output, sound played a large role in the exhibition. To create this hybrid experience the V&A collaborated with sound specialists at Sennheiser, whose mission was to help the Museum 'bring together Sound and Vision' (Sennheiser, 2013). However, where sound experience can often strengthen the relationship between visitor and exhibit (in its provision of additional content), I found that in this case it distanced my relationship with the exhibits. Whilst the content of Sennheisers sound guide was both relevant and interesting, its all-encompassing and controlled nature made it difficult to fully engage with either the sound guide OR the collection. Different to others, this audio guide is not a 'guide' at all; instead audio info is triggered based on where the user is currently stood, removing the opportunity for viewers to navigate their own experience. Hopping around to find the right trigger spot, I began to resent the audio content for dictating my viewing experience. Overall, it seemed that the exhibition content was being relayed by too many voices (both active and contributing at the same time). Had the audio content been activated by the visitor's selection rather than triggered by their location, this may have minimised confusion between the multiple information sources, and minimised the audio guides control over the visiting experience.
This post is critical in its discussion to recognise how tech can hinder a viewing experience as much as it can heighten it. Perhaps curating the work of a Musician/Artist whose career is multi-faceted (fashion, music, artwork, video, design etc) requires a similarly multi-faceted viewing experience. However, when introducing these new dimensions the audiences' liberty to engage with art independently should never be forgotten.
Click here for the Sennheiser press release.
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