Warm Oscillator

A household heater is driven by a single sine tone, a symbol of linearity.

Through its metal body, nonlinear vibrations emerge, such as subharmonics, distortions and unstable resonances.

In a cold space, visitors gather around the warmth, tracing invisible lines of movement and shared bodily memory.

The work reflects on how industrial objects, like historical narratives, are designed for linear function, yet inevitably carry nonlinear memories shaped by climate, labor, and post-industrial life.

Load-Bearing Lines　

Stainless steel threaded bars connects sound transducers to existing holes in the exhibition wall. A low-frequency sine waves travel through the bars and enters the building’s structure, producing subtle vibrations that might be felt more than heard.

The work treats the wall not as a neutral boundary, but as an archive of past use—marked by traces of construction, removal, and repair. By reactivating a pre-existing holes, the piece borrows an architectural scar and transforms it into a channel for transmission.

The metal rods form lines, carrying sound, force, and memory through solid matter. While the input signal is linear and minimal, its passage through the building becomes unstable and diffuse, shaped by the hidden interior of the space.

Photography ©︎Etienne Leung