As this was the last module in this MA course a decision was made not to complete a final piece (as with previous modules), but to create a set of ideas that could be developed after the course. Also, this module required experimentation rather than a firm conclusion as part of the assessment criteria.

The starting points for these ideas were based around image and sound that were born inside computers and digital devices, and that would then be output to analogue or alternate environments.

In the true spirit of ‘experimentation’, ideas were allowed to grow as the module progressed. This meant that initial ideas were shaped during the module by exhibitions visited, appropriate texts studied and dialogue with peers and the module tutor.

One theme that emerged from all of this was detail: not as in ‘attention to detail’ but real analytical observation of specific details, for example, the recording of a hand opening and closing or the simple sound of a computer voice giving a dictionary definition of a word.

The playback ability of the computer allowed for repetition that further enhanced the analytic process that I was trying to find. It just so happened that I had begun to listen to Steve Reich’s retrospective album ‘Phases’. Doing so inspired me to scrutinise the material that I was recording with a more powerful microscope.