Sound Waves as Design

Apparel & Industrial Design

I have various chimes in my backyard, and on windy days, they create a mix of melodic, soothing, and sometimes chaotic sounds. Their unpredictable harmonies sparked my interest in soundwaves and how sound can be mapped visually. Using online applications like Photomosh and Sonic Visualiser, I capture the spectrum, waveforms, and hidden layers within an audio file. Once I generate visuals from the chimes' sounds, I integrate them into industrial product designs and motion graphics.

Project Information

Creative Brief

Objective:
Transform the organic sounds of backyard chimes into visually compelling graphics that integrate seamlessly into industrial product design and motion graphics. The goal is to explore the intersection of sound and visual storytelling, creating immersive experiences that bridge auditory and visual perception.

Key Features:

Sound is more than an auditory experience. It can be mapped, visualized, and integrated into tangible design elements that enhance storytelling and engagement.
Bold, dynamic, and immersive
A fusion of organic and digital aesthetics
Experimental yet refined

Target Audience:

Designers and artists interested in experimental sound visualization
Brands seeking innovative approaches to product aesthetics
Audiences intrigued by the fusion of nature, technology, and design

Approach

Sound Exploration:

Captured chime sounds on windy days, analyzing their melodic and chaotic qualities.
Used Photomosh and Sonic Visualiser to extract waveforms, spectrums, and hidden layers within the audio files.

Visual Translation:

Converted soundwave data into abstract graphics, emphasizing rhythm, movement, and texture.
Applied these visuals to industrial product designs, including furniture, textiles, and motion graphics.

Results

Innovative Product Design:

Developed a red-orange-yellow couch featuring a soundwave graphic, placed on a hilltop lawn filled with dandelions, merging nature with digital aesthetics.
Created a motion graphics mockup poster for an event like Mercer Labs NYC, translating soundwaves into fluid, dynamic animations. Hoping that one day, the space will host soundwave-based performances and immersive exhibitions.

Audience Engagement:

Sparked conversations about the relationship between sound and visual art.
Demonstrated how sound-driven design can enhance branding, storytelling, or immersive experiences.

Future Applications:

Potential expansion into interactive installations, wearable designs, and digital environments.
Further exploration of AI-assisted sound visualization for generative art projects.

Tools & skills

Adobe Photoshop
Sonic Visualiser
Mosh Pro App
Conceptual Thinking
Artistic Experimentation
Visual Storytelling
Attention to Detail

Different kinds of chime sounds are being generated using JavaScript to create waveforms and spectrograms.

Sonic Visualiser is a free, open-source application that provides various visualizations for audio analysis and allows for close study of music recordings. It is designed for musicologists, archivists, and signal-processing researchers.

Mosh-Pro app oﬀers a real-time and quick visual eﬀect mixer built for unlimited creative control of images, videos and gifs.

Since Mercer Labs NYC specializes in immersive experiences with lights and sound, spectrograms could be a perfect visual for creating motion graphics poster that enhance and promote their events.

Red & Orange: Usually signify high-intensity frequencies, meaning louder or more dominant sounds.
Yellow: Represents moderate intensity, often showing areas with sustained energy but not as strong as red.
Cooler colors (blue, green, purple): Indicate lower energy or quieter parts of the sound spectrum.