[Reflection] Sound as Artistic Medium

During our in-class project with sound editing I find sound to be a very interesting medium. First of all, it is 3-dimensional and the viewing (or hearing) experience is very different from what we perceived as conventional art medium. Since we focused so much on “visual art” the use of sound really changes our perception. We are left more interpretation and mystery because we can rely on our ears. While we “hear” we are also “looking” for clues and thus engaging our full body.

Sound editing is particularly interesting because unlike visual art where I may be dictated to present a specific image in my mind and worrying about problems such as the composition not coming through and the materials not right, audio art is more experimental and less restricted – it offers unlimited opportunities to play with and it is more fun to manipulate using different methods as well. It can also be combined and presented in various form including recording, installation, performance etc. I think young people will be drawn to sound art because it walks between fine and pop art. It may be more attractive to young people because it has the elements of what they’re interested in: technology and pop culture.