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A SHOCK IN THE ear

Analysis by isSano Rogers

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NavIigaTioN

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FIRST viewing

From first navigation and perception, A Shock in the Ear was very effective in expressing its main thesis of shock. I say this mainly because I was shocked, and I disliked how much it shocked me. It felt like a rabbit hole in how many screens led to other screens, without initially understanding why or what they did. The colors are searing and bright, and they flicker depending on where your cursor lands.

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ViSUals aND FX

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Language A& sOUND

The transitional sounds, which are categorized as, in no particular order, a sucking noise made with a mouth, a piano chord into a guitar riff, shifting liquid, and a distorted voice speaking the name of the piece, are themselves exemplary of the main topic of shock.

With the sucking noise it can evoke two associations, the sucking of teeth or slurping the way one would slurp soup, rude or uncouth gestures in several cultures. The piano chord/ guitar riff is akin to one that in film shorthand might signal an unease, an unwelcome turn of events. The liquid sounds as if it exists at the bottom of a well, being disrupted in its original image.

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INTERactiveITY

Part of what makes the interactiveness of the piece so inextricable is how it forces you to dive deep into the feelings of shock, every definition of the word. Certain elements of shock that one might feel are difficult to explain or put to cohesive words, so this piece rejected formality and went with what felt rawer, which then translated into how the viewer experienced it. Without preparation A Shock in the Ear makes little sense, which is akin to when one might be faced with shock. But upon a second excursion, despite the shifting sites, it begins to make sense, and begins to coalesce into one multi-layered narrative.