Sound Art, or Audio Art, emerged as a phenomenon in the late 1970s and became fairly well known in ’90s.The sounds used can be natural, man-made, technological, etc. Works can take form of Performance Art, Kinetic Art, Video Art, etc.
The “art of noises” was explored a bit by Futurists and Dadaists early in the century. Mid-century, John Cage redefined music as combinations of sounds and noises.
Robert Rauschenberg
Broadcast (1959)
Three radios behind a canvas and two tuning knobs on the surface.Oracle (1962-1965)
A sculptural sound environment.Soundings (1968)
A massive plexiglass screen with concealed lights activated by the sounds of the viewers.
Cordier & Ekstrom gallery, NY, 1964 “For Eyes and Ears.” Sound Art show.
Lee Ranaldo (1956- )
Brian Eno (1948- )
Christian Marclay
Guitar Drag (2000)
A 15-minute video of an amplified electric guitar being pulled behind a pick-up truck along dirt roads of Texas.
Works Consulted
Dempsey, Amy. Art in the Modern Era: A Guide to Styles, Schools & Movements. NY: Harry N. Abrams Inc., Pub., 2002.