2014
In the 2014 collection Soundspaces: Espaces, expériences et politiques du sonore, editors Guillaume Faburel and Claire Guiu use Max Neuhaus to examine the intersection of sound, urban geography, and the politics of space.
The contributors position Neuhaus’s work within a larger "spatial turn" in sound studies:
The text analyzes how Neuhaus’s Times Square installation serves as a "re-enchantment" of the city. By introducing an unmarked sound into a public thoroughfare, Neuhaus creates an experience of discovery that disrupts the "political" management of urban noise and pedestrian flow.
Faburel and Guiu explore the concept of "territory" through sound. Neuhaus is cited as an artist who defines invisible boundaries. This aligns with Blake Johnston’s idea of the "Experience Shaper," where the artist doesn't just present a sound but dictates a new way of inhabiting a physical zone.
he book highlights how Neuhaus’s work empowers the citizen-listener. Instead of being passive consumers of city noise, listeners in a Neuhaus "place" must actively engage their senses to locate themselves within the soundscape. This reinforces the "metaperceptual" focus of Johnston’s thesis.
The authors connect Neuhaus to the broader movement of social and cultural geography, arguing that his "sound topographies" are not just art, but tools for understanding how we perceive our social environment through our ears.