ALPHA BRAVO
Wynne Palmer

This project concerns the idea of the body, location and communication.

From WW1 to the present day spies who are embedded in enemy territory use a specific spy code to communicate with allies and home base. These are called number stations on short wave radio and are used by most developed countries — authorities often deny their existence when directly asked. This audio code of voices, blips, beeps and music convey enemy locations and activities in foreign countries. This code is very hard to track and decipher, much like the Enigma machines, also used during the war. It is an abbreviated form of human communication much like an audio short hand. It requires a sender and receiver, both of which must know the primer of the code. It challenges the idea of what communication is and illustrates how we adapt our language to suit the needs of our circumstance. If you look at current day codified communication, there are many examples of modern language and code being used including: java code, html, pure data, and programming languages, etc.

This mysterious code stands in for the body in its location buried in enemy territory, and thus is the only indication of human presence. The native tongue used to communicate is the only indication of home base and nationality. This spy code supersedes all languages hence becoming a truly, albeit secret, universal language.

– Wynne Palmer

Wynne Palmer

Wynne is a multidisciplinary artist who has a fondness for new media, possibly from her years spent as a graphic designer. Her work is often informed by issues concerning identity, the body and communication.

Wynne received her BFA in Visual Art from Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design, and her Bach. of Design degree from University of Alberta. She is a co-founder and board member of the Cue Up Collective 2003-2008 and sits as a board member for the Emily Carr University Alumni Society. She has exhibited locally, nationally and internationally including recent shows at The Gallery Factory in Seoul, Korea, Mercury Theatre in Vancouver and at the Arbetets Museum in Norrkoping, Sweden. She has curated several local shows including Evolution: 80 Years of Emily Carr Institute Alumni. She has received a number of awards and her work is in a number of collections including Canada, USA and Germany. Originally from Ontario, Wynne has lived coast to coast in Canada, but considers Vancouver her permanent home where she now lives and works.