Bill Fontana - Australian Sound Sculptures (Edition Block, 1988)

Another document of the always innovative Bill Fontana, here presenting in reverse chronological order two works from his formative recording experiences in Australia. The first is an installment in his Acoustical Views series of pieces, similar in many ways to Landscape Sculpture with Fog Horns in its pooling of eight locations into one. Inherent to these works is a notion that consistently appears in Fontana's work, that of "hearing as far as you can see." The second piece, recorded in 1976, marked the point when Fontana's interests shifted toward this eight channel aural perspective. These recordings of Kirribilli Wharf in Sydney are built with eight microphones inserted into cylindrical holes in the whart, producing percussive sounds as the waves close the openings. Fontana then replayed this recordings in various settings around Sydney, several years later playing them as part of an exhibition at the Whitney.

Australian Sound Sculptures