AV (Audio Visual)

AV (Audio Visual) was an event showcasing artworks by twelve artists local to the Ojai Valley and installed indoors and outdoors at a private residential property. In collaboration with the Ojai Music Festival, the show highlights the intersection of Visual Art and Sound. I worked with each artist to create a custom created audio composition that was played through speakers within the installation in various forms.

Below are individual videos of each piece along with a description of the processes and concepts behind creating the art work and the audio.

*For the most optimal experience, listen with good headphones or speakers.

For more information on each artist visit their IG handle.

1. Carol Shaw-Sutton - Womb Room

Womb Room was installed by Carol in an old stone wine cellar with hanging textiles creating a comforting space and a stunning large egg made of feathers as its centerpiece. For the audio, I blended deep water sounds recorded in a pool, a distant sub-sonic heartbeat and plaintive piano chords to evoke a peaceful and cozy embryonic experience.

2. Bhagvati Khalsa - Composition for Objects

Bhagvati creates beautiful ceramic objects with different colors, textures and patterns. Some are conical, some are solid, and some are hollow orbs with beads inside. All of them create wonderful sounds when tapped, brushed or shaken.

The sounds in audio came almost entirely from playing the objects (aside from the bass drum).

The objects were installed on a table with sand to create an elevated zen garden. They were organized in what we’re calling a “sculptural score”. Meaning, the placement of the objects represented the audio composition.

The piece begins with airy sounds for the sand. A sonic through line is a continuous low bass drum represented by large half circles placed down the middle of the table. Then sounds from the objects are introduced in a random playing style just as the the objects are placed randomly. At the center of the table, the objects are place in a strict grid as you hear the sounds lock into a rhythmic pattern. The objects become random again, as does the sound and then dissipates back down to just the bass drum and sand.

The score and audio reads from left to right and then from right to left. Speakers were placed on each side of the table so when sitting at the table the sound travels across the stereo field as it travels through the score.