Nine Lives
Disappear into the stories of nine strangers as they try to make sense of the world around us
Welcome to Nine Lives. Travel from the depths of the Indian ocean to London’s subterranean networks, beneath shadows cast by the moon’s mountains to a broken fence in Norwich. Each of these audio portraits, crafted in the summer months of 2021, follow nine strangers as they try to make sense of the world around them. Explore, and listen in whatever order you want to.
Martin
At first none of us knew what it was. Suddenly it was everywhere, lurking beneath the surface, waiting to attack. For Martin, stepping outside suddenly became very dangerous. The bright lights of the supermarket were a thrill; a dice with death.
Divya
Divya is striving to preserve ocean habitats. She works a lot with people who fish. She tries to see the world through their eyes. They catch food. We buy food. They need to survive. But the predators from the deep that get caught in their nets? The ones we fear so much? They need to survive, too.
Lucianne
A tiny leaf floating on Lake Michigan. Shadows on the moon made by mountains. We’re just one tiny part of something huge. Lucianne studies the planets and wants us to use our dreams of civilisation in space to reimagine what’s possible here on earth.
Lisa & Elliot
Lisa and Elliot’s fence was broken. It wasn’t acting as a boundary, like it was supposed to. To anyone else, a fence might just be a fence. But when Elliot was in prison, Lisa would circle the walls and wonder, ‘what kind of people would build these?’.
Daniel
A wiggly and wavy process, deepening over time. He would move his body a little; it was very cold. Then he would meditate. Emerging 75 days later, Daniel discovers that he has missed a global pandemic.
Elaine
Walk in. Sit down. Bombarded with computer screens. You’re in a video game and all you can do is react. Even later, you still have no idea what happened. Elaine visualises herself as somebody who can take everything in front of her and piece it together for others in seconds.
Paul
Keys that all look the same, but each unlock a different drawer. False teeth. False legs. Hats. Shopping trolleys. Human remains. 15 million treasures. Why isn’t somebody looking for you? Paul is. This isn’t the end of the line. You might be lost, but it doesn’t mean you’re gone.
Norma
Norma is One. Deputy Mum. Her brothers are Two and Three. They grew up next to an Aerodrome in London. There was always bombing; terribly noisy. All she remembers is her brothers fighting. Her mother didn’t want Three. Now, Norma has three: One Plus, Two Plus, Three Plus. Perfection, but not quite enough.
Jade
Jade is the starting point. No daylight. Cells growing on a plate. Pancakes or fried eggs. Deep underground, she spends each day counting chromosomes and freezing cells. You can actually see a human embryo without a microscope. How do you comprehend the scale of life when it’s right in front of your eyes?
Credits and acknowledgements
The audio was created by Jo Barratt with Phil Smith, who composed the music. The sound descriptions are by Amelia Barratt.
Nine Lives was conceived and produced by The Liminal Space, who are a unique creative studio that uses art and design to change how people think, feel and do. Their purpose-led practice helps people, researchers and brands to create positive social impact.
The project was commissioned by and developed in dialogue with the Barbican's public programming team (Liz Daramola, Razia Jordan, and Siddharth Khajuria), and made possible with the support of Wellcome.
Rachel Williams from the Barbican created the online experience, and Plan B creative studio developed the motion graphics. Thank you also to the team behind Soundhouse, whose work we've learnt from in the way we've brought this project together.
Finally, and most importantly, thank you to the people who told us their stories for generously taking part in this project: Paul Cowan; Norma Gordon; Jade Williams-Gill; Martin O'Brien; Divya Karnad; Lucianne Walkowicz; Lisa Selby & Elliot Murawski; Daniel Thorson; and Elaine Wong.
December 2021
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