With Every Pulse a Word Lost

With Every Pulse A Word Lost holds two realities: the sounds of the extraordinary ecosystems of the Wollemi and Blue Mountains landscapes, and the fractured seismic tremors of active coal and sand mines operating within the Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area.

Using hydrophones and geophones, Jana Irmert traced the quiet pulses of hanging swamps and river gorges as well as the infrasonic rumbles and drones of the mining processes. As water is pumped from mining sites, these systems are drained and potentially polluted. Once dried out, the swamps can never recover.

This multichannel sound work has been developed during Jana Irmert's residency at BigCi for the BigCi Environmental Art Award 2025 in Bilpin, NSW, Australia.