Ghost Trees
Nature as Data · Immersive Audiovisual Installation · 2020–2024
Music Composition · Sound Design · Data Sonification · Audio Director
THE PROJECT
Ghost Trees is an evolving audiovisual artwork by Gary Sinclair and James McGrath, bringing together environmental science, data, music and visual art.
The work is built from environmental data and eco-acoustic recordings collected through the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), creating a digital memory of the endangered Rushworth Forest in Victoria.
THE MUSIC
The soundtrack began with the forest.
Eco-acoustic recordings were analysed for their inherent musicality which became source material for the composition. Melodic phrases were also generated from the spatial data points of individual trees.
The environmental data was not simply inspiration for the music. It became part of the composition itself.
The work was subsequently adapted to very different spatial environments, including approximately 60 speakers across The LUME's 3,000 m2 immersive space and a 9-speaker spatial installation at the National Film and Sound Archive in
SELECTED PRESENTATIONS
2024 · National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra
2022–23 · The LUME, Melbourne
2022 · Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize finalist, South Australian Museum
2021 · DLECTRICITY, Detroit, USA
2021 · LUNA Fête, New Orleans, USA
CREDITS
Artists: Gary Sinclair & James McGrath / Nature as Data
Gary Sinclair: Music Composition · Sound Design · Data Sonification · Audio Director
James McGrath: Visual Director
Environmental Data: Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN)
Mastering: William Bowden
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“Something beautiful, otherworldly and unexpected, a collision of art and science. There is a feeling of being inside the trees, above them and around them. It’s mesmerising.”
— The Canberra Times.
“The result is an ephemeral, artistic and moving convergence of art and data that paints a compelling portrait of what we are losing from the natural world.
Ghost Trees exemplifies how the arts can be used to create connections, share knowledge, inspire conversations and drive collaboration towards a more sustainable future.” - Chris Mercer NFSA