Swiss artist Zimoun, previously covered here for his work with the acoustics of woodworms, has been producing a long series of installations involving immersive cardboard structures—both surfaces and spaces—sonically activated by embedded motors. The rain-like plinks and plonks that greet you as you encounter these installations isn’t beautified or specially tuned; in any other context, it would simply appear to be industrial noise.

Watch this recently updated compilation video to hear them at work:

Here are installation shots from three of Zimoun’s recent works—all of which use “prepared” motors, in the artist’s description, like the prepared pianos of composer John Cage, a technique here applied to micromachinery. In a similar vein, it would be interesting to see work produced using “prepared” elevators, “prepared” doorways, or “prepared” architecture at all and any scales. Prepared bridges over rivers, prepared docks on the sea.

1) 200 prepared dc-motors, 2000 cardboard elements (2011)

[Images: From 200 prepared dc-motors (2011)].

2) 121 prepared dc-motors (2011)

[Images: From 121 prepared dc-motors (2011)].

3) 138 prepared dc-motors, cotton balls, cardboard boxes (2011)

[Images: From 138 prepared dc-motors, cotton balls, cardboard boxes (2011)].

See more at Zimoun’s website.