The Olympus camera was a nice piece of hardware that I enjoyed using. I actually have one much like it at home. It was very simple and efficient which is a good quality in a camera. One feature in which it differs from other cameras I’ve used is zooming in and out while recording. For the most part, however, I was able to accomplish everything I wanted to using the Olympus camera.


The video editing software that I used on my Drift 2 project was Sony Vegas Pro 8.0. Originally I wanted to use Final Cut, but the version I got wasn’t compatible with PC. I was worried that Sony wouldn’t like the Quicktime movie files, but I was relieved when it worked out. Before this software, the only editing program I had used was Windows Movie Maker, the simplicity of which is only rivaled by iMovie. Vegas Pro was a little more complicated, but once I got the feel of it I came to like it much more than Movie Maker. I will definitely use this software on future projects until Final Cut is made readily available to PC users.

The article I read was “On the Aesthetics of Urban Walking and Writing” by Phillip Lopate. I was really able to connect with this article because of Lopate’s love for Manhattan. I have a certain love for the city as well. I grew up in Minneapolis and the city has since become a part of me. The people I met there and the overall feel of the city is what made me want to stay in a city for college which is why I came to Milwaukee. Lopate’s description of the streets of Manhattan brought me back to Minneapolis and the feel of the city.


Lopate emphasizes the value of walking in the city. By walking aimlessly and taking in the sights and sounds of the city, one can learn things about themselves and about the city that were previously unrealized to them. The realization of your surroundings both visually and audibly is a repeated theme throughout the article. Another thing that Lopate describes is the awe felt when experiencing the immensity of the city and its skyline.


As a media artist, I believe it is important to find the aesthetic aspects in every detail of your work. Lopate’s wandering aesthetic supports this in that the things he notices are details which go unnoticed when walking with a purpose. It goes to say that beauty can be found on many different levels when one takes the time to notice it. As a media artist, one should incorporate many levels of aesthetic detail for those few who take the time to look for it.

1.Are there any back roads that lead to something interesting?

The river road that I took to Humbolt, I found, actually continues to the point at which I concluded my Drift One walk. For Drift Two, I will follow the road there and start my drift two walk where I ended my drift one walk.

2. Is there a house that has a very unique and interesting architecture?
There is a new housing complex along the river that is relatively unique in architecture. They all follow an abstract rectangular design which comes off as quite modern. I would estimate that this housing complex house upwards of five hundred residents.

3. Are there any places where sound takes on a strange quality?

Along the River, sound takes on a strange quality in that the sound of flowing water backgrounds any sound that is recorded. In most cases I’ve found, it adds to the quality of the recording.

4. Where can I find the strangest sight within my Drift area?

At night time underneath the Holton Bridge, a hidden projector projects a green visualizer on the wall of the bridge. Its hard to explain the qualities of the visualizer except that it is mildly psychedelic.

5. What differences are there on Lake Michigan between night and day?
Depending on where the moon is at and how full it is, at night it casts a reflection across the lake. Also during the night you lose the sense of immensity the lake has during the day because you can only see so far into the darkness.

6. Are there any places where one can make a complete 180 degree turn and only see nature?
The one spot that I can think of in which you can witness only nature would be by the lake.

7. Are there any buildings that will give me access to a high and panoramic view?
I don’t know about buildings, but there is a park over by Riverwest that has a great panoramic view of Milwaukee’s skyline.

8. Is there some kind of elaborate garden in the area?
The closest thing to an elaborate garden would be the park over by Riverwest. It is well maintained and a nice spot for experiencing nature.

9. Are there any kind of monuments in the area?
I didn’t notice any monuments, but I’m sure there will be some for me to find while doing my Drift Two walk.

10. Are there any bodies of water (other than Lake Michigan) in the area?
The Milwaukee River is a body of water which I followed during my Drift One experience.

1. Describe two situations that aggravated, bothered, shocked or otherwise stressed you during Drift One.

On my first walk which proved unsuccessful, I walked around Riverwest. I didn’t really have a strategy in mind except for recording on the go. There weren’t very many interesting sounds that I found that way, and the ones that I did record were short lived because I was on the move, and the change in my pocket made it easy to hear my steps. Another difficult aspect of the drift experience was trying not to make myself too known the people in my surroundings. Being by myself I wanted to avoid questioning if at all possible.

2. Describe, with details, two situations during Drift One in which you felt unusually peaceful, at ease, or contemplative.

The first situation in which I felt unusually at ease was when I walked out over the river underneath the Holton Bridge. I stood there with the wind in my face and took in a good three minutes of sound. I had a nostalgic feeling that reminded me of the many summer days spent chilling along the banks Mississippi. I spent time reflecting on the river. I contemplated the river’s start point and end point and related the river’s flow to my drift walk which was in essence a flow itself since I just walked blindly and overcame obstacles as they arose. Another point at which I felt at ease was on the walk home after finishing my recordings. I continued to listen to the environment and experienced a heightened sense of sound. I hope that I will continue to use this in any creative endeavors that I might accomplish.

3. Describe three surprises or unexpected situations you encountered on your Drift and in the days that followed. The surprise could stem from your expectations that conflicted with "on the ground" realities, cultural or social issues of which you were previously unaware, feelings and reactions that you did not expect to have, appearances and soundings of things you did not expect, good or bad outcomes of "on the spot" decisions you had to make, or the discovery of "deeper" realities in the materials you brought home. (Again, skip anything technology-related!)

On my first Drift walk through Riverwest, I was relatively unaware of my cultural surroundings. As I moved farther East, I noticed that I stuck out as a minority. It was a bit of a shock and at first I was a little uneasy about it, but I continued my walk and began to notice that people were relatively friendly and curious about what I was doing with my microphones. A couple people stopped to ask me about it and I explained the project to them. They were interested and wanted to know more. Another surprise that I found on my drift walks was the number of people looking for handouts. In Riverwest alone, I had three people ask me for spare change. I felt for these people, but didn’t feel the need or want to look in my pockets. Instead I lied and said that I had nothing to spare. While recording on Brady, I captured a woman screaming angrily, “HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” I was shocked to find out that she was yelling at me. Apparently she thought I was writing graffiti on the dumpster that I was standing next to. I was a little startled and I explained to her what it was that I was doing. She seemed a little embarrassed and went back in her shop.

4. Describe your favorite experience, situation, place, or recollection from your Drift. Be specific about what happened, how you felt, how you reacted, and why you think this particular experience affected you so much.

When I came across the children playing at recess, I knew I had to make a recording. They were so joyful and energetic and in the moment. I watched them for a minute from across the street and laughed to myself as they chased each other around the blacktop. The teacher kept a watchful eye on them, but failed to notice me. I walked along the opposite side of the street and began my recording. I envied those kids. Their lives are simple and they have yet to feel the pressure of responsibility. A feeling of wonder washes over me when I think about who they are to become, what choices they’ll have to make and how they’ll make a difference in this world.

1. Identify the article you have selected and why you chose it.



The article I chose was "Will Self: On ‘Psychogeography’ and the Places That Choose You." This article caught my interest because of Will Self's personal insights and experiences with Psychogeography. This gave me a better understanding of the aesthetic value of walking and listening to an urban landscape and in doing so discovering and learning about the place of which you are a part of.



2. What are the main points of the essay?



The main points of the interview were to highlight the points of a person's pre-concieved notion of "place" and breaking that notion through the exploration of the urban landscape through walking and listening which Self describes as the only real form of exploration left in the post-industrial age. The idea of psychogeography is his backdrop as he explains that one must experience the urban geography without using it. Through the practice of solitary walking, one can see past the illusion that is the urban humanity.



3. How are the ideas or arguments in this article relevant to your own practice as a media artist?


In a general sense, I believe that in order to be an effective media artist, you must sometimes disconnect yourself from your surroundings. In doing so, you allow your mind to think creatively. As it relates to psychogeography, discovering one's own environment and seeing it for what it is lays a fine base of understanding of contemporary urban culture and landscape.

• Were you able to find places and spaces where you could really listen?

Most of the spots that we went to were polluted with the sound of conversation and traffic which made it difficult to hear the sounds of the urban landscape. The best spots to me were the ones where it was quieter. The parking garage for example amplified even the smallest of sounds which made it very easy to hear and listen to sounds.

• Was it possible to move without making a sound?

While moving as a grup and listening together, it was fairly easy to move without making a sound.

• What happened when you plugged your ears, and then unplugged them?

When I plugged my ears I saw things that were making sounds, but couldn't hear them, so I visualized the sound in my head

• In your sound log exercise, what types of sounds were you able to hear? List them.

Hard Soounds: Breaks hissing, skateboards clacking, bikes clicking, sewer covers banging, airplanes soaring.

Soft sounds: trees swaying, people cooking, a squirrel crackling in the dead leaves, water dripping.

• Were you able to differentiate between sounds that had a recognizable source and those sounds you could not place?

There were sounds that i recognized and was able to associate them with a source, but there were plenty of sounds that i was unable to place

• Human sounds? Mechanical sounds? Natural sounds?

There was a constant mixture of these sounds.

• Were you able to detect subtleties in the everpresent drone?

sound frequencies, tones, and pitches were constantly changing in the ever present drone

• Extremely close sounds? Sounds coming from very far away?

The close sounds were generally more quiet and the ones from far away were louder.

• What kinds of wind effects were you able to detect (for example, the leaves of trees don't make sounds until they are activated by the wind)?

The wind hissed in the trees, hummed in the parking ramp, and howled outside mitchel hall

• Were you able to intervene in the urban landscape and create your own sounds by knocking on a resonant piece of metal, activating wind chimes, etc.?

The only sound I made on the sound walk was when I threw a rock down the sidewalk and it skipped along the pavement.

• Do you feel you have a new understanding or appreciation of the sounds of our contemporary landscape/cityscape?

I've definatley learned some good ways to listen and become more aware of different sounds that I hadn't listened to before.

• How do you think your soundwalk experience will affect your practice as a media artist, if at all?

I think that the soundwalk will help me to control sounds in my art and also to realize what I can;t control.