Can We Still Hear the Ocean? How the Artifact Q4 #101 Translates Shenzhen Underwater Recordings into an Interactive System

Maritime cities have different relationships with the sea, influenced by geographical, geopolitical, and cultural factors. This project focuses on Shenzhen, exploring this relationship through a sensory interface. We captured underwater soundscapes from a canal in Shenzhen where it meets the sea, using a hydrophone. These recordings were transformed into an interactive artifact called “Q4 #101,” which features audio data rendered as an abstracted spectrogram, 3D-printed in transparent resin, and houses microelectronics and miniature loudspeakers. In an exhibition, Q4 #101 is suspended from the ceiling, emitting raw hydrophone recordings. An ultrasonic sensor triggers sounds from the 3D-printed shell as spectators approach, facilitating a physical interaction with Shenzhen's waters. Q4 #101 makes the urban ocean tangible, challenging traditional boundaries. By bringing the ocean into a lab and an art gallery, we aim to amplify its presence, offering a poetic interpretation and revealing hidden materialities beneath the city's surface.