Tristan Louth-Robins

Artist Statement // Self Noise speculates the experience of the natural world, by both human and machine agents,and what sounds can tell us about our environment. Traditionally, the term ‘umwelt’ has beenused to describe the perceptual world experienced by animals (including humans), but morerecently this term has found relevance in discourses concerning artificial intelligence, and how certain AI frameworks (machine learning, artificial neural networks) may perceive and understand the world around them.

The work’s title is derived from a term applied to undesired phenomena present in sound

recording technology, either as an inherent trait, an interaction with the human user, or from the influence of the surrounding environment. In these instances, an audio document may be

compromised by unwelcome artifacts, such as wind shear, the patter of rain, handling noise or internal sound generated by the device itself.

Within the installation space, sounds emerge from a central sculpture and speakers deployed in the room. The sounds were recorded remotely at various sites with an automated acoustic recorder (AudioMoth) and were occasionally affected by instances of self-noise. Heard as drifting permutations and in layers of association, the sounds may ascribe certain meanings to the otherwise ambiguous appearance of the sculpture.

Tristan Louth-Robins is an artist and writer based on Kaurna Country working principally in the medium of sound art, acoustic ecology and data science. Ideas of sound and its signification are key elements in Louth-Robins’ practice, traversing the spaces between the visual and aural his work is realised through composition, field recordings, installation, sculpture and digital platforms. He is interested in sound and its associative implications - including its relationship to the surrounding environment, technology and urban spaces. Recent activities and ongoing research interests have been concerned with aspects of environmental disruption, climate change and personal agency in a rapidly changing world. Since 2011, he has facilitated the long term project, the Fleurieu & Kangaroo Island Sound Map and maintains writing and data science blogs.

tristanlouthrobins.com

Nicole Clift writes about Tristan Louth-Robins in Neoterica 2024.

Tristan Louth-Robins, Artist notebook, 2024
Tristan Louth-Robins, Self Noise, 2024, acrylic paint on plywood, loudspeakers, six-channel sound, Raspberry Pi, algorithms and code, iPods, amplifiers,installation dimensions variable. Sam Roberts Photography.