The Seashell Refuge is a wearable interactive piece which allows audiences immerse in an audible environment. As the audience moves around, these seemingly chaotic sounds (the noise of cars, the sound of pedestrian zones in my home town) pan from the left channel to the right channel, creating a stereo environment.

When I wear the shell, I could feel a sense of warmth and safety, surrounded by the sounds of my home town. However, people from different cultural backgrounds may find it disturbed and confused, as they may not be used to living in such a chaotic environment. These divergent uses of the shell displace the fear, confusion and nerves—my own sense of dislocation after moving to a foreign country—onto the audience, although those who share the same cultural background might feel comforted.