WASHINGTON, DC.- As part of the Hirshhorn’s ongoing "Directions" series, the museum has commissioned a new artwork by Janet Cardiff (b. 1957), a Canadian-born artist known for her inventive use of binaural sound technology. Cardiff will develop a 20-minute multisensory audio walk artwork in which the artist’s layered sound effects merge to evoke a blending of history and memory. The audio walk will debut Aug. 3 and will continue through Oct. 30. "Directions—Janet Cardiff" offers visitors an interactive means to consider an array of ideas and experiences while contemplating the legacy of the National Mall. This artwork also will become a dynamic addition to the Hirshhorn’s collection.

Visitors will individually start out from the Hirshhorn’s lobby with an Apple iPod shuffle that delivers audio directions instructing the visitor where to walk. Directed by the voice of the artist—which is interspersed among enhanced recordings of ambient sounds, a cappella music, excerpts from historic speeches and snippets of interviews with individuals who recount their Mall experience—participants will pass through the Hirshhorn plaza and Sculpture Garden, along the National Mall and through other Smithsonian museums. Cardiff’s voice-over also includes instructions and references to specific artworks, buildings and vistas as visitors approach them on the predetermined route. The work is designed to be an individual experience and will be administered in a way that prevents participants from overlapping at any point along the route of the walk. The audio walk is free, but photo identification or a credit card is required in exchange for the temporary loan of this equipment. For a list of select hours to experience this audio walk, visit www.hirshhorn.si.edu or call (202) 633-1000.

Cardiff’s first audio walk artwork was developed in 1991 during a residency at the Banff Center for the Arts in Alberta. She inadvertently turned on a tape recorder and felt estranged from the persona projected by her own voice. Since then, she has used narration as a means to create an intimate connection to her audience. According to organizing curator Kelly Gordon, "In many of Cardiff’s works, her soothing whisper is off set by sound effects so vivid, so subtle, so three-dimensional that they challenge participants to distinguish what is and is not 'real.'"

The artist has created audio walks in cities including Florence, Italy; London; San Francisco and New York, as well as at the Canadian Pavilion at the 2001 Venice Biennial. Cardiff holds a bachelor’s degree from Queens University, Ontario, Canada, and a master’s degree from the University of Alberta, Edmonton Alberta, Canada. She has had numerous solo exhibitions and a retrospective at P.S.1. MOMA in 2001.

The Hirshhorn’s "Directions" series has brought the work of leading and emerging international artists to Washington since 1987. "Directions—Janet Cardiff" is made possible in part by the Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation; Trellis Fund; contributions to the Hirshhorn’s Curators’ Circle; and the assistance of the Canadian Embassy. iPod shuffles are provided by Apple.