TAILSPIN: AN INQUIRY INTO THE EQUILIBRIUM OF AUDIO-VISUAL FEEDBACK

This paper is an exploration and creative inquiry into the equilibrium of audio-visual feedback. Following a Research-Through Design approach, we actualized this inquiry by designing an ad-hoc audio-visual instrument: TAILSPIN. In this instrument, a closed audio-visual and physical loop is created between a microphone and its speaker, and a camera and its display, which are controlled by a performer. The tenets of feedback are then understood through the contextual research of cycles and loops in our natural environment. In this paper, we present the technical details of the instrument and offer novel insights into the audio-visual equilibrium within the context and intricacies of our own natural environment and organic feedback systems.