Material Sound

In an era of ecological crisis and digital fatigue, Material Sound examines how contemporary artists are returning to the physical origins of sound.

Moving beyond John Cage's influential focus on "sound-as-sound," this study explores how installation and media artists reveal the material realities hidden within sonic experience. Sound emerges from material contestation—there can be no sound without the shifting of matter. Yet in our fractured relationship with materials, we have often forgotten these physical origins. Caleb Kelly argues that by listening to the edges of the sonic, where sound is not always aesthetic, we can think differently about both media and matter. Spanning two pivotal periods in art history, Material Sound traces the shift from the dematerialisation of art objects in the mid-20th century to contemporary practices that make tangible our material realities. The book examines artists who are well known for their sound-based practices, including Len Lye, Max Neuhaus and Laurie Anderson, alongside others not typically associated with sound, such as Robert Rauschenberg, Vito Acconci and Nancy Holt. The book also focuses on contemporary artists from the Asia-Pacific region, expanding the critical context for sound studies beyond Western perspectives. Drawing on extensive archival research and critical attention to artworks from both internationally renowned and under-recognized artists, Material Sound offers transformative insights into how mediated art experiences can deepen our understanding of ecological realities by listening to materials.