The site accompanies Wish we weren't here, a project concerned with noise pollution and its local and global effects.
The site presents a series of sonic postcards, playable as vinyl records. They are inspired by similar innovations from the past.
In contrast to those historical postcards that conveyed cheerful and inviting sounds typically from holiday destinations,
this series presents listeners with instances of noise pollution from the places they represent,
prompting reflections on which aspects of these locations we consider as emblematic. Each unique card contains a selected field recording from the
site made by artist and researcher Jacek Smolicki
as part of his long-term project aimed at critically rethinking approaches to soundscapes and their histories.
The cards are available for purchase (48 EUR each plus postage costs), and the proceeds will be dedicated to combating environmental pollution.
For more details and inquiry, contact: info(at)para-archives(dot)net.
1. Underwater sounds dominated by noises
from the engines of vessels, container ships,
and oil tankers at the English Bay in Vancouver, Canada.
2. Dawn chorus near Totem Poles in Stanley Park
with background noises from the Vancouver shipyards.
3. Logs timbered from nearby forests, floating and bouncing against each other near the Fraser River delta in Vancouver.
4. A freight train on its way through
Abisko valley in northern Sweden, returning
from Narvik after delivering one of twelve daily loads of
iron ore from the Kiruna mine.
5. Water splashing ashore Walden Pond, near Concord, MA, punctuated by the noise
of a frequently passing commuter train nearby.
6. Waves washing over glass bottles and pieces of broken glass
on a contaminated beach in South Brooklyn, NYC.
7. A motor boar engine intercepting the underwater soundscape of
shrimp, oyster toad fish, and cricket frogs at dawn in Mosquito Lagoon, Canaveral National Seashore, FL.
8. Wind and rain animating debris from a German military
airplane that crashed at the foot of Saana mountain near Kilpisjärvi, Finland, during WWII.
9. Wind and rain animating debris from a German military
airplane that crashed at the foot of Saana mountain near Kilpisjärvi, during WWII.
10. Wind brushing the border fence between Finland and Norway
that incidentally serves as a receiver of very low frequency waves from the upper atmosphere.
Copyright: Jacek Smolicki 2023