I began by exploring the communication methods used by trees, including chemical signals, mycorrhizal networks, electrical signals, root communication, and sound. I imagined two trees, one acting as a speaker and the other as a microphone, with hundreds of piezo discs attached to the leaves. The sound from the 'microphone tree' would be played through the 'speaker tree', creating a feedback loop. I'm not sure why.

I made basic speakers using magnets, copper wire, and paper. I then used piezo discs as transducers to convert paper into rudimentary speakers. This led to attaching a piezo disc as a speaker to one end of a piece of card and another as a contact mic at the other end. Playing sound from the speaker, the microphone would pick it up; theoretically, the difference between the input and the output is the effect of the substrate on the sound.

I attached multiple pieces of card together to see how vibrations travel between them. I focused on different ways of connecting card and paper to enable the vibrations to travel through, and explored ways of manipulating and interacting with these connections.

Following this playful exploration, I am planning a semi-rigorous phase of research into the sound properties of paper, including resonant frequencies, the effects of paper thickness, the qualities of different connection options, and the effects of scale.

For the audio I've been using sine waves from a signal generator app, moving on to using white noise to analyse the resonant properties of the paper and card sheets. Eventually, this will involve a different audio source. I'm considering how the paper and environment can generate sound, which the connected paper then processes, creating a self-sustaining audio source. I want the sound to feel authentic, I am looking for a genuine connection between the audio and the sculpture.

Currently, the goal is to create an audio sculpture that is dynamic in some way, interacting with its environment and/or itself. I aim for the sonic elements and their connectivity to dictate the form.