Voice Path

“Voice Path” is a voice-activated audiovisual installation that unfolds along the pedestrian path connecting the museum’s main building with Gamboa Hall. Hundreds of spotlights located along the length of the footpath create parallel lines that respond to visitors’ voices. Two intercoms at either end serve as the input points: silence is interpreted as zero intensity, while sound modulates the brightness of each light, producing a series of pulses that echo participants’ messages in a Morse-like code. Once a message is recorded, the system loops it back through the nearby lights and loudspeakers, making the path both a display and a soundscape of recent contributions.

As new people participate, earlier recordings are pushed down the array of lights, so that the installation’s “memory” is continually recycled—older messages fade as newer ones arrive, forming an ever-evolving archive of voice and light that emphasizes the ephemeral nature of dialogue and presence. When no one is participating live, a selection of archival sound recordings from the Fonoteca Nacional, curated by Tito Rivas, activates the piece, creating a historical echo that coexists with recently recorded messages—a dynamic record of collective expression.

General info

Spanish name:
Calzada de Voces
Year of creation:
2026
Technique:
LED spotlights, speakers, intercoms, loudspeakers, computer, coded in OpenFrameworks.

Exhibitions


Credits

  • Archive curated by: Tito Rivas, Fonoteca Nacional
  • Software: Stephan Schulz, Lauria Clarke
  • Production: Antimodular Studio (Montreal): Stephan Schulz, David Robert, Emily Green, Jade Séguéla, Jess Blanchet, Lauria Clarke, Tim Belliveau, Véronique Dufour, William Sutton
  • Production: Proyectos Especiales – Arte Abierto (Mexico): Roberto Velazquez, Laura Vieco, Erika Loana Rivera, Daniel Ricaño, Pascal Schneuwly, Edgar Abraham Orozco, Jahir Emmanuel Osorio, Pavel Gustavo Cortez, Rogelio Martínez, José Daniel García, Victor Fernando Mendoza, Leonardo Yael Reyes, Felix Adrian Mendoza, Alfredo Mendoza Reyes, Carlos López, Diego López

Bibliography