Mikael Hwang

Signal is a “living,” playable music installation mediated by a microorganism. Built on the scientific, artistic, and theoretical contributions of James Gimzewski, James Pelling, Anne Nimetz, and Sofia Roosth, the project continues our exploration of yeast as an intelligent nonhuman entity, aims to attribute agency to it, and scrutinizes the anthropomorphic limitations of such efforts.

The artwork integrates biology, sound, light, and space across its three components: the object (an LP record), the incubator (which plays the record), and the installation (the pavilion). This culminates in an immersive, acoustic pavilion that transports viewers into the microscopic world of yeast. Central to this experience is a custom-designed LP record, contained in an incubator, which features music composed by the artist from samples of yeast cell sounds. The record also houses the lifeforms—yeast—from which the album was made, creating a playable, biological music medium.

Yeast has played a pivotal role in human civilization and scientific exploration, having been extensively tasted, smelled, touched, and imaged, yet its sounds have not been heard. By integrating the sounds of yeast into a record—a semiotic device of mindful listening—the project seeks to grant yeast agency within a sonic shrine dedicated to its cellular milieu. This endeavor also confronts the challenges of anthropomorphism, raising questions about the authenticity of representing yeast in this manner.

Despite genuine efforts to respect, mediate, and comprehend yeast’s existence through advanced technological and posthuman philosophical frameworks, escaping anthropomorphic perspectives proves difficult. Are we allowing yeast to “speak,” or are we speaking on its behalf? Can the sounds derived from yeast, transduced through acoustic technologies, truly represent its essence? Can we rely on hearing as a mode of interpretation if it is the product of human sensory experience and does not exist beyond human perception? And if we manage to interpret yeast’s signals, who determines the meaning behind this translation, distinguishes signal from noise, and interprets its cultural significance?