GROND/GELUID (GROUND-SOUND)

GROUND-SOUND is a soundproofing piece of land art for Schiphol-Hoofddorp in collaboration with H+N+S Landschapsarchitecten, TNO and Witteveen and Bos. Commissioned by Schiphol Airport and Mainport and Groen.

‘The 18th century physicist Ernst Chladni scattered sand on a surface he afterwards made vibrate with a string bow. As soon as the strummed surface sounded a fundamental the sand jumped up and organised itself into a geometric pattern. The invisible fundamental became visible in the sand.’ At different locations around Schiphol, but mostly in the north of Hoofddorp, residents experience nuisance from the sound of planes that use their engines to full capacity on the starting lane. This low frequency sound is also known as ‘grond geluid’, ground sound.
Calculations and field measurements have shown that the ground sound can be reduced when ridges are constructed in the mowing fields. To realise the wanted noise reduction the area of Buitenschot also requires these ridges. This seems to contradict the idea of Buitenschot as a park, but the thought of a ripple of ridges as a metaphor for the scattering and ending of the ground noise offers us many chances for an exciting park landscape to get lost in and find shelter. Sightlines create smaller and bigger ‘rooms’ that can be used for sports or games, recreation, dog walking or even events.
Ground and sound are contradicting terms; it is mass versus energy, solid versus thin, static versus dynamic. It is these kinds of contradictions that, when put together, appeal to the imagination.
The ‘Luisterend Oor’ and the ‘Chladni-vijver’ are some of the art objects in the area that use the phenomena sound and waves as their theme.

You can find a booklet about this project HERE (English)
Installation October 2013