[2023]
Currency Exchange is built from custom synthesizers where devalued coins and the human body are active electronic components. Currency removes currency from its exchange-only logic, repurposing it as use-value through labor. This work emerged within economic collapse and material decay, where DIY is both necessity and method.
Coins function as conductive junctions, modulating signal flow as the instrument is played. The performer’s body becomes part of the circuit: pressure, moisture, skin contact, and resistance alter electrical conditions. Oxidation, sweat, humidity, and contact quality are operational parameters. The circuit continuously adapts to bodies and environments, producing sounds that are non-repeatable across people, spaces, and time.
Research and instrument development supported by Home Workspace Program, Ashkal Alwan, Beirut (2023).
Performances
Workshops