The Trumpet of the Swan

BACKGROUND: This research expands on principles of remote writing through the pantelegraph (invented by Caselli in the 1860s), the polygraph, telautograph, and Margaret Atwood’s ‘Long Pen,’ examining how these could frame contemporary writing in networked communication practices. The research looks at Donald J. Trump’s use of Twitter as both a tool for immediate and direct conduit to his followers (Ingram, 2017), and as official record of the statements of the 45th presidency of the U.S.A., and how this can be embodied within phenomenological and archival art practice. CONTRIBUTION: “The Trumpet of the Swan,” named after E.B. White’s 1970 children’s book, is a custom-made robotic-writing machine (Simionato, robotics and font design; Donnachie, code) which automatically inscribes every unique tweet published from @realDonaldTrump onto a continuous roll of archival paper in natural media, using an original, natural-order continuous stroke, and machine-cursive script based on Hershey’s single-line fonts for oscilloscopes of the 1960s. As Trump’s tweets reach his readers directly, circumventing traditional media, they flow seemingly without material weight. This research attempts to embody and ‘give weight’ to these disembodied missives, writing on paper what presumably has never been written. Currently, the machine has inscribed over 8000 tweets on archival paper. SIGNIFICANCE: The work won the prestigious “Tokyo Type Directors Club Prize” for 2019, judged by an international panel of experts awarding only 10 prizes from over 3000 entries, with past awardees including internationally recognised leaders in the field such as Jonathan Barnbrook and Neville Brody; was exhibited internationally (Ginza Graphic Gallery, Tokyo; DDD Gallery, Kyoto); featured in “The Best in International Typography & Design” (TDC, 2019, Vol. 30, pp 30-31).