We live in politically, socially and financially uncertain and complicated times, so it is easy to feel stressed, overwhelmed by what we see on the news or by what goes on in our countries. It is difficult to find our peace of mind if we are consumed by modern anxieties, but, luckily, there are artists out there working on projects that may contribute to restore our collective spiritual balance.
Cutting-edge sound artist evala and international sound art pioneer Akio Suzuki are for example currently working on an experimental project entitled "Soundscape Image Generation", revolving around nature and sounds, opening in a month's time in Japan.
Born in 1976 and based in Tokyo evala (See by Your Ears), is a musician and sound artist known for his experimental electronic music and spatial compositions in which sound behaves dynamically, as if it were a living entity.
Three years ago he launched the project "See by Your Ears", which uses stereophonic systems as a new instrument to create novel audiovisual experiences; he then developed a sound installation meant to be experienced individually inside a dark anechoic chamber that brings about the new audiovisual sensation of "seeing by your ears" and an audio vessel where visitors take a journey through space and time using sound from 576 speakers built around Sony's Sonic Surf VR technology.
Born in 1941 in Pyongyang, Akio Suzuki created in 1963 the event "Throwing Objects Down a Staircase" at Nagoya Station that literally consisted in throwing a bucket of objects down the stairwell of the Nagoya train station, and then started developing explorations of natural sounds, turning listening into his artistic practice. In 1988 he performed his piece "Space in the Sun", which involved purifying his ears for twenty-four hours in nature on the meridian line that runs through Amino, Kyoto.
Coinciding with the Setouchi Triennale and the Okayama Art Summit 2019, "Soundscape Image Generation" (27th September to 24th November) will be located in Nakazu Banshou-en, a traditional Japanese garden with over 330 years of history in Marugame City, Kagawa Prefecture.
Built in 1688 by Kyogoku Takatoyo this circuit-style daimyo garden features 1,500 wakamatsu pine tress and a pond with eight islands made to resemble the "eight views" found in Lake Biwa in Omi, the ancestral home of the Kyogoku Family.
With a name - "Banshou-en" - that refers to all of nature or rather to the entirety of the universe, the garden is also linked to the Marugame Art Museum, built in the style of a flat-building tea ceremony arbor, and to the restaurant Kaifutei, with a view of the garden.
Using the latest technologies in sound art and with the help of computer generation software, evala developed for the garden a new work in his "Anechoic Sphere" series that will set place in the oldest tea ceremony house in Japan, dating back to the days of the Edo Period. Sounds that evala recorded from around the park and the Setouchi Island Sea fills the small tea room and gradually transforms and leads listeners to a new dimension. evala will also place speakers around the park as an outdoor sound installation that creates a mysterious world of sound.
Akio Suzuki's "Otodate" will be featured at several locations in the gardens of Nakazu Banshou-en. This hands-on piece has viewers follow the footprint-like ear markings drawn on the ground throughout the park that, when stood upon, allow listeners to hear different sounds. By standing upon the "Otodate" as they find them while enjoying the garden, visitors can hone their senses of sight and hearing, thus creating scenery that is all their own.
The most intriguing thing about these project is not just the fact that they will help visitors getting spiritually in touch with nature, offering them an environment where they can meditate surrounded by enveloping soundscapes, but the news that some of these installations may be able to inspire further projects about nature and sound.
The sound system developed by evala for this project for example could be used for future nature parks and public facilities, so it can serve as pioneering example of how to employ cultural heritage sites to meld the environment with contemporary art for society to enjoy.
Image credits for this post
All images by Kenshu Shintsubo
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