Sound Work Location: Kunsthalle Basel, Switzerland.
Dimensions: 22 x 11 x 10 meters. Extant: October 2 - November 6, 1983
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Image: Max Neuhaus Drawing
For his sound installation at the Kunsthalle Basel, Max Neuhaus used a similar technique. He first located all the sounds and noises in the large hall on the second floor: passing traffic and streetcars, additionally amplified by the pipes of the heating system fitted behind paneling around the entire hall - a feature of this particular room. Neuhaus also noticed the creaky old parquet floor and an occasional click in the pipes. He then used a synthesizer to create a loose layer of sounds and noises along the edges of the hall measuring 22m in length, 11m in width and 10m in height. The effect was somewhere between a clicking and a dripping sound that could clearly be heard, when it was quiet, emanating from the lower part of the room and blending with the sounds outside. The sound sources were invisible, hidden under the heating system
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Jean-Christophe Ammann, "Notes on Max Neuhaus", 1983
Jean-Christophe Ammann, Anmerkungen zum Schaffen von Max Neuhaus, 1983 (German text)
Sound Installation, Kunsthalle Basel, (text German and English) by Max Neuhaus 1983
Carter Ratcliff, "Space, Time and Silence: Max Neuhaus' Sound Installations", 1983
Image: Max Neuhaus, Sound Installation Basel (invite)
From October 2 to November 6, 1983, Max Neuhaus presented an untitled sound installation at the Kunsthalle in Basel, Switzerland. The work was designed as a “site-specific work,” in which sound interacted specifically with the architecture of the exhibition hall, transforming the space into an auditory sculpture.
Features of the installation
Ambient sound: For the installation, Neuhaus introduced a continuous and seemingly static, almost imperceptible sound. The experience was based on the fact that the audience had to “sit down and open their ears to what sounded like noises produced by the air conditioning or heating system.”
Perception of space: The sound, with no visible source, was perceived differently depending on the viewer's position within the room. In this way, the work manipulated auditory perception, prompting the audience to focus on the sound environment and the place itself as a work of art.
Architecture and sound: Neuhaus used the dimensions and acoustics of the main hall of the Kunsthalle Basel (22 x 11 x 10 meters) to shape the sound, transforming a visually neutral environment into a dynamic sound experience.
Publication: A bilingual catalog (German and English) entitled Max Neuhaus: Sound Installation was published to accompany the exhibition. The text included a note by Jean-Christophe Ammann, then director of the Kunsthalle, analyzing Neuhaus's work.
Contextualization
The Basel installation was part of an important series of exhibitions Neuhaus held in 1983, including one at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris and one at the Whitney Biennial. This period was crucial to his international reputation as a pioneer of sound art. The work is a significant example of Neuhaus's method, which consisted of creating discreetly hidden installations that invited the audience to a more conscious and focused listening experience.