Touch

The Rhythm of Pain

MP4 File designed in BeepBox.co

 “Pain produces irregular bleats from the nerves at jagged intervals. Itching produces a fast, regular pattern. Heat produces a crescendo as the area heats up. A little pressure produces a flurry of excitement, then fades, and a stronger pressure just extends the burst of activity.” - Diane Ackerman, A Natural History of The Senses.

I am fascinated by the idea of mixing senses and translating one into another. When I read the quote about the patterns of different types of touch, I decided to take on the challenge of reinterpreting the feelings of pain into sound. For "The Rhythm of Pain", I used an online tool for sketching and sharing instrumental melodies called BeepBox. Using BeepBox, I turned each of Ackerman's descriptions of types of pain and touch into its own rhythm. Pain is an irregular, sharp melody. Itching is a fast paced, constant tone. Heat is a swelling, bubbling tune. Light pressure is flurry of sounds. Lastly, strong pressure is a louder, more vibrant version of light pressure.

Palm-Reader

Ink and pastel on paper

"She searches the flexure lines (creases made by moving the hand), tension lines (wrinkles that grow with age the way facial lines do), and papillary ridges (fingerprints), traces my head line, heart line, life line and fate line.” - Diane Ackerman, A Natural History of The Senses.

Hands are a unique part of being human, with the exception of primates. We use our hands for everything in our normal day to day life. We grab, hold, poke, touch, wave, wipe, push, flick, pinch, pat, squeeze, crack, press with our hands. We even have entire languages based off of hand gestures and signs. So it it only natural that hands are valued and that people have attributed mystical powers to hands such as the art of telling ones future through palm reading. My artwork is an inked handprint that shows all the intricated lines of my hand, all the delicate lines that a palm-reader would read. The pastel background represents the different readings behind the lines, the colorful web of possibilities, visions, and destinies a palm-reader would read from the hand.