Taipei Fine Arts Museum exhibition explores sound, perception

Taipei, July 3 (CNA) A contemporary art exhibition that opens at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM) on Saturday will explore how sound intersects with perception, environmental justice and politics using somewhat unconventional media.

Titled "Attunement: Contemporary Politics between Mindscape and Soundscape" (調:心境與聲景之間), the exhibition features works by 13 artists from Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, the Middle East and Europe who use many types of media, such as Chinese ink scrolls, bioelectrodes, field recordings, and sonic warfare research.

Speaking at the exhibition's opening ceremony Friday, Singaporean curator Hsu Fang-tze (許芳慈) said the exhibition is less about sound itself than about broadening the ways people perceive and connect with the world.

"The exhibition itself does not emphasize sound. Rather, it reminds us that we experience the world through more than just sight," she said.

Hsu encouraged visitors to approach the works with an open mind rather than trying to interpret the title before entering the galleries.

"Don't feel you have to understand every work. Instead, consider how each one shapes your perception and engages your senses," she said.

The exhibition focuses on the interconnected themes of "breathing," "listening" and "resonance," and draws on both Western and Eastern philosophical traditions, according to the TFAM's description of the show.

It takes inspiration from German philosopher Martin Heidegger's idea of "attunement" and the Daoist concept of "perfect music" in the Zhuangzi.

In both traditions, sound is understood as a way of connecting people with one another and with the world around them, the museum said.

Among the highlights is Lebanese artist Tarek Atoui's "Pulses in 11," an installation combining turntables, cymbals, gongs, water drops and computer-generated sounds.

Other featured works include Taiwanese artist Chen Ting-Jung's (陳庭榕) "You Are the Only One I Care About (whisper)" (我只在乎你(私語)), an eight-channel sound installation built partly from discarded newspapers, and Vietnamese artist Nguyen Trinh Thi's "47 Days, Sound-less," a three-channel video installation presented with mirrors.

Hsu said the exhibition, developed against a backdrop of growing geopolitical tensions, climate change and the influence of social media, ultimately underscores the importance of listening and mutual understanding.

While art alone cannot bring about world peace, she said, it can encourage reflection and empathy by inviting people to experience the world from different perspectives.

The exhibition runs from Saturday through Sept. 27 in Galleries 3A and 3B at the TFAM.