The title of the thirteenth Sonic Acts Festival, The Poetics of Space, is derived from the English translation of the book La Poétique de l'Espace (1958) by the French philosopher Gaston Bachelard. In this work Bachelard meticulously describes the influence of space and architecture on humans and implicitly argues for a new type of architecture based on experience and imagination, an approach that is not only rooted in science or functionality.
Ever since the emergence of symphonic orchestras, composers and sound artists have expressly worked with the spatial aspects of sound. This includes research into the further electronic spatialization of classical ensemble works and orchestral works as well as researching acousmatics, a technique whereby sound is distributed through space in such a way that the original sound source is no longer perceivable. Besides the development of surround sound and acousmatics, the electroacoustic improvisation circuit started exploring how musical space and audio space could be made central during live performances.
Research has also been conducted into more extreme ways of making sound tangible, for example in Jan-Peter Sonntag's raum-Arbeiten series, in which he uses standing waves to generate sonic architectural structures. A more subtle approach to spatialized sound takes the form of field recordings, soundwalks and acoustic spaces. These various approaches enable a profound exploration of specific spaces and environments.
In the early 1970s the experimental filmmaker Anthony McCall created spatial volumes of light, by projecting geometrical figures in hazy environments, so called solid light films, of which Line Describing a Cone is the most famous. Another entirely different approach to dealing with space involves focusing on the human body and senses. The quest for inner space in the 1960s and 1970s developed in parallel with the development of space travel and the exploration of outer space. From the perspective of architecture as experience, domes, developed for multimedia events, appeal to the imagination. The Pepsi Pavilion at the 1970 World Expo in Osaka, Japan, was an enormous immersive artwork, with the exterior constantly enshrouded in smoke, and the interior filled with reflective objects and light sculptures.
Researching spatiality in the arts is the core of the festival. This involves a number of fundamental questions. How is space defined by a work of art? What does a viewer or listener experience? How do technological artworks deal with the visual, auditory and psychological aspects of spatiality? How has the relationship between technology, space and architecture developed over the past few centuries? How have technological developments influenced our perception and representation of space, and how do we relate to the space that surrounds us?
Sonic Acts The Poetics of Space is entirely dedicated to the exploration of space in performative and audiovisual art, film, music and architecture. It examines the importance of physical space in times of far-reaching technological developments, and the physical and psychological impact of spatial designs.
The programme comprises four densely filled days and nights and will provide an extensive overview of recent works and experiments – spatial audio compositions, audiovisual installations and performances – and includes relevant historical examples and utopian ideals and dreams from the twentieth century.
Come and explore the Poetics of the Space!
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