image: lisa kelly / stuart simpson

4Walls is a project that investigates the life that exists beyond the confines of the home: the neighbours. Based upon the experiences of an eclectic group of participants of different nationalities, gender, age groups and ethnicity, a database of stories and anecdotes has been documented for a digital artwork of sound and moving image that can be re-presented as installation, video or audio book. These recorded narratives form the core of the work and act as both documentation and oral history, providing insights into how social dynamics have changed throughout the years. What is also made explicit is how community is viewed; its formation and disintegration; how contemporary community is not determined by proximity but by affiliation.

The database contains nearly eighty real-life narratives that explore the underbelly of living in the company of, for the most part, virtual strangers. The private space of the home is a frontier town that at times becomes invaded by the outside world. The sounds that permeate the brick and concrete to penetrate our private lives; the arguments, the love making, and the pets that scream away the day; the stories of others but stories only half heard form a virtual reality that can only be guessed at. 4Walls is a commentary on the insularity of modern times, of living with sets of neighbours who are strangers and accessed solely through the walls. Based on the vagaries of these sounds we attempt to build their profiles, making our own meanings from the sonic accompaniment that surrounds us. They become part figment of our imagination, part ghost in the skirting with personas that conform to what we believe.

Joining the sonic database are the views captured from each participants front and back room windows. Static for the most part these views show us the homogeneity of contemporary existence; the clothes line washing breezes that sway away the day; the car rides that break the sweat of tired streets and the open spaces of hypnotic seascapes. The database has been configured for an interactive installation, artist’s video and audio book.

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