Projects
Kow
Kow
Kow (Cornish meaning cavity or hollow) is an experimental XR documentary exploring the post-industrial identity of West Cornwall's most remote peninsula.
Following the closure of the tin mining industry, this immersive work, heavily featuring spatial audio soundscape composition, captures stories of folk and nature between Zennor and Cape Cornwall, amplifying voices often overshadowed by tourism.
Experiment
£20,000
Aims of the project
The work will merge DIY analogue processes with cutting-edge technology, creating a 360° virtual gallery of key landmarks including Zennor’s returning choughs, Pendeen lighthouse’s history, Geevor’s mining legacy, and Cape Cornwall’s folklore. High-quality ambisonic field recordings and community interviews will form interactive soundscapes mapped through Unreal Engine, where each location becomes a living archive combining sonic textures with the voices of those rooted in The Tin Coast.
The installation at Geevor Mines museum will utilise a 25-channel High Order Ambisonics speaker array, allowing audiences to experience the work collectively, while VR headsets enable active exploration of West Penwith’s sonic map. This dual approach preserves communal engagement while offering personal agency in navigating the soundscapes.
Born from my South West Coast Path journey (2021), ‘Kow’ opens the ‘hollow’ of overlooked narratives to both local and global Cornish communities, creating an accessible digital archive that preserves the region’s vibrant yet nostalgic post-mining identity.
Meet the artist
Natalia Mamcarczyk
Lead Artist, Director and Sound Designer
she/her
Natalia is a creative artist and director with expertise in Spatial Audio composition and design, and a growing focus on film direction and implementation. Her experience spans AV content, VP volume film, theatrical Dolby Atmos, VR & 360° video production, binaural audio, and immersive sound installation.
Her work focuses on amplifying hidden voices and exploring subjects made difficult by social taboo, with feminism and critical theory at the lead of her approach. Her practice involves soundscape composition, interview, and introspective sound design, incorporating voice, memory and raw emotion, seeking artistic intervention.
As a Polish-born, UK-based artist, she brings reflection on post-Soviet social transformation and the effects of politics on human identity, having worked in the UK and internationally via British Council, ACE, PRS, MyWorld, Pervasive Media and other arts organisations.
