The FM Broadcast Knapsack is designed to inconspicuously broadcast live radio in the FM band on a low power, or micro- level. The device consists of an FM transmitter, antenna, power supply, and microphone pickup. It is worn while walking on specific routes in New York and other major cities and transmits live ambient sounds picked up from a concealed microphone during the walk. Transmission occurs on frequencies that are occupied by licenced broadcasters, and there is no advance schedule of frequency or route information in an effort to impart an absurd or surreal experience to listeners. Documentation of outings are accessible to the gallery viewer (recorded sound, and a logbook of route maps). Radio listeners will hear the piece as an anomaly. Neighborhood sounds will interfere with the broadcast they are listening to for as long as I'm within their vicinity. The range of this device is determined by power limitations and landscape variations (i.e. buildings) therefore each transmission outing defines a space of specific shape and duration. The work 'draws' itself in space as nodes of reception within a roving cloud of interference. 2004
FM Broadcast Knapsack
