Why Do Birds Sound Like Car Alarms Now?, 2015
Three-channel electro-acoustic sound installation recorded at Hemisfair and processed by artist
Justin Boyd
Why Do Birds Sound Like Car Alarms Now? at the Sound Scout
Familiar sounds like children’s laughter, birdsong and car noise are variously abstracted then reassembled into new sounds. All weather speakers are mounted along the park’s historic acequia, from which processed sounds allow a progression of discovery. Each sound’s relationship to the next, and to the space as a whole, has been considered to draw visitors’ attention to the act of listening. Through this renewed focus, patrons begin to hear all of the naturally occurring sounds around them. This awareness leads to curiosity about why a particular sound is different here than over there, drawing the listener down the acequia to investigate more of the park.
Why Do Birds Sound Like Car Alarms Now?, is the first iteration of Sound Scout, a rotating series of sound installations at Hemisfair.
Justin Boyd is an artist and educator living in San Antonio. He received his BFA from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and his MFA from the California Institute of Arts. He is currently the Chair of the Sculpture and Integrated Media at the Southwest School of Art and has been a recipient of an Artist Foundation Grant, Artpace Travel Grant, was a finalist for the Arthouse Texas Prize, and has had the privilege to participate in numerous solo and group exhibitions.
Artist Website: www.justintaylorboyd.com
