Announcements

BACKGROUND Announcements contributes to the broad field of sound art and the narrow field of spoken audio artworks situated within the public domain. Key characteristics of this scholarly debate include sound works that enhance an experience of public space through their subject matter and surprising approach, in particular artworks experienced via mobile phone. The work seeks to extend this field by using the form of spoken announcements to guide the listener into thinking about the world and themselves differently within the context of railway stations and the foyer of a public library. CONTRIBUTION This work is framed by the following research question: How can a series of professionally recorded announcements enable listeners to think about time and space, cultural etiquette, advertising and psychology in new ways? Dr Kosloff and Assoc Prof Andy Thomson wrote twenty short announcements that refer to cultural phenomena in imaginative and accessible ways and were professionally recorded in a sound studio using a voice actress. The announcements were then broadcast in the public foyer of the Brunswick Public library via speakers and sound equipment embedded in the roof and made available for download on smart phones via the Bemoir app linked to the Festival website. Signage was placed at stations along the Upfield train line explaining that commuters could scan a QR code or type in a link in order to play the recorded announcements as they travelled along the train line. SIGNIFICANCE The Creative Work was commissioned for the MoreArt Public Art show curated by Jane O'Neil and Daniel Mitchell. This unique exhibition is now in it's 6th year and features site-specific artworks across Brunswick and Coburg. Dr Kosloff delivered two public artist talks as part of her involvement in the MoreArt program. A new version of this work has since been commissioned for the 2017 Melbourne Public Sculpture Prize.