Sounding Art Practice as Research (SAPAR)
Art classrooms are spaces where students are given opportunities to express their creativity and engage in activities that promote their imagination. In this exposition, I explore a specific art classroom, at the Saturday School of the Pennsylvania State University, through the use of sound recordings and visualizations. To do this, I practice SAPAR (sounding art practice as research) aiming to highlight the various activities that took place during the art class and show how students contributed to creating a positive and supportive classroom environment. SAPAR is an arts-based methodology that allows one to listen, give meaning, and understand the sounds of their surroundings (Altuntas, 2021). Moreover, as an artist and researcher, I don't only create sound visualization as data but also use my research as a means to perform a sounding artwork. Regarding the possibilities of significant sounds in an art education space, in my art practice as research, I discovered various aspects of acoustics as separate movements—noise, clapping, and silence.
The pre-service teacher responds,
“Yes, after we finish working on this week’s artwork.”
The student starts clapping as she walks into the room.
Marcel Cobussen's (2017) definition characterizes "sounding art" as the encompassing auditory landscape of this present moment, existing here on this square, seen as a (human) composition and thus serving as a potential manifestation of sounding art. In this art classroom, the sounds of clapping construct the rhythm of the space; and this writing performance showcases the profound interplay between sound (as text) and visual elements, challenging biases and illuminating the untapped potential of sensory experiences. In this approach, the trilogy serves as a foundation—noise, clapping, and silence perform as social practice and construct the cultural indicators of the art classroom. The sounding art of the trilogy is an ontological exploration of the role that sound plays in our perception of the world. By experimenting with soundscapes and other acoustic phenomena of the art classroom, we can challenge our assumptions about what constitutes as music.
On a serene spring day, I am sitting together in one of the art studio classes with middle schoolers and a pre-service teacher,
the sound of a student fills the room.
“Are we going to share our work today?”
The trilogy of Saturday Art School explores the presence of sound in the art education field and shows some of its expressions beyond sound and talk such as the presence of sound happenings as percussion within the interest of ways in which these processes perform as pedagogy. The trilogy also unfolds an intriguing tapestry of sound happenings, where percussive elements emerge as conduits for artistic exploration and pedagogical growth. In the first movement, Background Noise as Talk, we witness the presence of sound as an omnipresent force within the art classroom. Beyond mere conversation, the noise of the classroom permeates the atmosphere, resonating in words as experience. The soundscape of the Saturday Art School becomes a symphony of artistic expressions of the students with their rhythmic pulses of pencils on paper, their subtle whispers of inspiration, and the rustling of materials intertwine to create a vibrant auditory tapestry. In the second movement, A Bouquet of Clappings, we shift our focus to the realm of sound happenings in the classroom. The percussive elements take center stage, acting as catalysts for transformative experiences, engaging students in sensory explorations. The final movement of the trilogy, A Second of Silence, embraces the stillness amidst the cacophony of the art classroom. Moments of profound silence emerge, in the absence of noise and clapping.