Ivana Dama: Breathing Alarms

Breathing Alarms by New York-based artist Ivana Dama, who was born and raised in Belgrade, former Yugoslavia, reimagines this East German guardhouse as an immersive environment that invites visitors to engage directly with sound, space, and the mechanics of perception. At the center of the installation is an air-raid siren, an acoustic and visual device historically associated with monitoring and protection whose form and function are deeply embedded in the Wende Museum’s material history. Rather than operating through a conventional mechanical or electronic trigger, the custom siren in Dama’s installation is activated by the breath of visitors. This sensing system translates breath into a siren sound while simultaneously activating an animation of birds within a bespoke aluminum zoetrope mechanism. Collective inhalations and exhalations power an analog system in which sound emerges through shared physical presence. The intensity and character of the siren are shaped by the volume, rhythm, and frequency of breath, translating subtle bodily actions into an acoustic experience.

Breathing Alarms highlights the relationship between air, sound, and motion, foregrounding the material qualities of airflow and vibration that underlie acoustic technologies. Visitors encounter the siren not as a fixed signal, but as a responsive instrument, one that reveals how sound can be generated, modulated, and sustained through collective participation. This work extends Dama’s research into alarm signals across social and natural systems, from the absence of birdsong as a warning sign to the role of air-raid sirens in signaling ecological, political, and social issues.

Breathing Alarms is made possible by the generous support of the David Bermant Foundation. Developed in collaboration with the MIT Center for Bits and Atoms, with researcher Alfonso Parra Rubio leading design and digital fabrication, and research scientist Quentin Bolsee contributing to system development. Additional support includes Jason Nuttle from the Yale Center for Engineering Innovation and Design for mechanical motion system design, and Yonatan Rozin for real-time interactive system design.