Sense Interference - ASMR

Project 01

Project Description

For this project, I created a device that can distort and amplify the sense of hearing, combined with a small performance that produces friction-based sounds, in order to construct a physical ASMR experience. Through this device, my intention is to explore the possible relationship between human hearing and the sense of tension.

My inspiration comes from the ASMR sleep-aid videos that frequently appear online. These videos often generate friction sounds and soft sounds, using microphones to focus and intensify audio in order to stimulate the listener’s auditory perception and achieve effects such as relaxation and sleep induction. The sounds are typically low-frequency and stable, which helps to release tension and anxiety. Therefore, I made a headphone that can amplify sound from a specific direction while blocking out noise to imitate the function of a microphone. Simple materials such as plastic sheets, cardboard, and wooden boards are used to produce friction sounds. Through this process, I try to explore what kinds of sounds can create a sense of relaxation through hearing.

Perspective & Context

Merleau-Ponty argues that perception emerges through our bodily contact with the world. In the video, I also noticed that he suggests that “Motility is the spatiality of the body brought about in action. Consciousness and original intentionality actually take place in motility,” as well as his claim that the “body is engaged with the possibilities that its surroundings present it with.” I understand these statements as closely linking bodily perception to kinetic and changing elements within the environment. This is an important reason why I incorporate an ASMR performance into my project. What I get from Merleau-Ponty’s ideas is that perception is a bodily response to changes occurring in one’s surrounding environment. As a result, the project requires not only a device that amplifies hearing, but also performative actions that allow users to sense perceptual differences through bodily engagement. I intentionally introduced variations in sound intensity and spatial movement to activate the user’s perceptual response to motion and mobility, emphasizing perception as an embodied and dynamic process.

Development & Technical Implementation

Since my goal is to amplify specific hearing perception, my first consideration was the need to isolate noise. So I designed different components for each ear. On one side, I used a paper cup to create a closed space and filled it with cotton to further block sound from that side. On the other side, I made a long, tubular sound channel, made from dense sponge material. I chose sponge because its higher density effectively blocks sounds coming from other directions. These two parts are connected with wire. As a result, the spatial sounds arriving at the human ear from multiple directions are focused into sound coming from a single, specific direction.

I mainly researched why ASMR can produce anxiety-relieving effects. I found that this is because ASMR involves low-intensity, close-range hearing stimulation, which creates a gentle and stable perceptual experience, thereby activating brain responses associated with a sense of safety. Based on this research, I decided to produce several types of friction sounds. One is relatively soft, created by scraping plastic sheets and cardboard with a wooden board. The other is more intense, produced by rapidly rubbing the edge of the wooden board. I hope that users will wear this device, close their eyes, and experience these different friction sounds, while noticing changes in their own sense of tension. During the performance, I present the sounds in a circular, surrounding way to create variations in intensity and an immersive sense of spatial presence.

Presentation

The feedback I received from the presentation was that this device does indeed amplify sense of hearing from certain directions. However, what I did not expect was that my first user preferred the stimulating sound produced by rubbing the edge of the wooden board. Prior to the presentation, I assumed that this sound would be too intense and harsh, and would therefore induce a sense of anxiety because that is how I perceive such sounds. My user explained that she frequently listens to ASMR and tends to prefer more intense sensory effects. This response reminded me of a finding from my earlier research that not everyone is able to experience ASMR, and even among those who can, the effects vary greatly from person to person. The user’s feedback allowed me to more clearly perceive the individual differences between people’s senses. As discussed in the first class, some people associate different sounds with colors, so similarly, whether a particular sound releases or increases tension is also subject to individual variation. I found this feedback especially valuable, as it led me to a deeper understanding of sensory perception and its variability.

Conclusion

I believe this project first helped me understand how perception emerges through contact and interaction between the body and the world, and secondly allowed me to experience the variability of perception between individuals. I have come to realize that this diversity of perception deserves greater attention. Initially, I designed three sound-based experiences according to my own sensory assumptions, but overlooked the range of perceptual feedback that could emerge from others. What my device succeeds in doing is focusing and amplifying sense of hearing. What still needs improvement is an acknowledgment of the diversity of possible perceptual responses, which could enrich the range of experiences within the performance as a whole.

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