Tacita Dean, Sound Mirrors, 1999. single-channel video (16mm film, sound). 7 min (loop). Courtesy of the artist and Frith Street Gallery, London. The 1st Seoul International Media Art Biennale media_city seoul 2000 city: between 0 and 1. Seoul Museum of History. 2000
This 16mm black-and-white film displays footage of massive structures known as ‘sound mirrors’ found on England’s southern coast. Built during World War II to detect enemy aircraft through sound, these structures functioned as architectural receivers and amplifiers. Their limited success and eventual replacement by radar has left them as historical remnants and symbols of impossible utopian aspirations.
