Sodankylä Geophysical Observatory, 1944. Image taken from Sucksdorff, C et al. ‘Space Physis’. Geophysica (2001)

Lore of the Radio Fossil

Exhibition Project Writing
Unsolicited Multiple locations
September 2017

We follow a satellite image as it traverses the bounds of Earth’s surfaces, elements and atmospheres. The story itself is a technique for attuning to a parallel wireless world with the aim of witnessing a radio-active Anthropocene.

This exercise in collaborative writing prefigured open-weather. Lore of the Radio Fossil was first exhibited at Goldsmiths, University of London in the Centre for Research Architecture’s Masters Show 2017, and later broadcast live on Radio Tonka 92.0 Den Haag FM on 5 July 2018. An online version with audio ‘tuning forks’ was published in Temporary Art Review in 2017. Datscha Radio Berlin performed and broadcast the work as part of the festival, Listening to the Universe – Radiophonien des Alls, in 2020.

a screenshot of the Lore of the Radio Fossil PDF.. yellow

Lore of the Radio Fossil

This performance script was co-authored by Sophie Dyer and Sasha Engelmann.
Download PDF ↓
▴ Listen to Lore of the Radio Fossil performed on Datscha Berlin Radio in 2020.
▴ Sasha reads during the live broadcast of Radio Techno Fossil on Schimmengebied, 92.0 Den Haag FM
▴ Crop of A0 giclée print. Left: Lake Ollinlampi, Finland. Source unknown. Right: Sodankylä Geophysical Observatory, Finland. Source Sucksdorff, C et al. ‘Space Physis’. Geophysica 37.1–2 (2001): 309–355. Sodankyla Geophysical-Observatory

Credits

The original audio for the work was designed by Daniele Guerrini and Matthias Girardi (Cage Suburbia), with field recordings compiled by Sophie Dyer and Sasha Engelmann.

The script was co-authored by Sophie Dyer and Sasha Engelmann.

Special thanks to following people who so generously answered our questions and sent field recordings: Bill Liles (NQ6Z), Thomas Ashcraft, Jyrki Manninen (Sodankyla Geophysical Observatory), Anatol Guglielmo and Oleg Dmitrievich Zotov (Borok Geophysical Observatory), Mélanie Legru (ESA), Laura Rocchio (NASA), James Thieman (Radio Jove/NASA), Larry Dodd (K4LED), Timo Sukuvaara and Timo Ryyppo (Finnish Meteorological Institute).