Bill Fontana is an internationally renowned American composer and media artist, widely recognized for his pioneering work in sound art. Since the 1970s, he has continuously explored the relationship between sound and space, using sound to reveal subtle, often imperceptible changes in the environment and to reshape how we perceive the world around us.

In 2025, Fontana was invited to Taiwan to participate in Of Anarchy in Music: More Journeys in Sound, a collaborative exhibition between the NTMoFA and the Centre Pompidou, where he presented his major work Parallel Soundings: Silent Echoes and the Melting Glacier.

In 2026, Fontana is specially invited by NTMoFA to undertake a residency, during which he will carry out research and pre-production for a new sound art project. Developed in collaboration with the museum, the work will respond to Taiwan’s local environment and cultural context. Through this collaboration, NTMoFA continues to promote international exchange and expand diverse interpretations of Taiwanese culture within a global context.

Date & Time
April 11 (Sat) | 14:00–17:00

Venue
Residency Studio, NTMoFA (TBC)

Description
During his residency at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, American sound artist Bill Fontana has conducted extensive sound and video recordings across significant natural and historical sites in Taiwan. These materials will form the foundation for a future site-specific installation.

In this artist talk, Fontana will share the pre-production process behind his immersive sound sculptures, developed from recordings made in diverse locations across Taiwan, including Alishan, Yangmingshan, Gaomei Wetlands, and Sun Moon Lake. Through his unique perspective as a sound artist, he will offer insights into how he listens to Taiwan, inviting audiences to imagine landscapes shaped through sound.

Resident Artist Biography

Bill Fontana (b. 1947) is an internationally renowned American composer and media artist, and a leading pioneer in the field of sound art. Since the 1970s, he has been dedicated to exploring the relationship between sound and space, using sound as a sculptural medium to reveal subtle acoustic phenomena that often go unnoticed, and to reshape how we perceive architecture, sites, and everyday environments.

Over a career spanning more than six decades, Fontana’s work has focused on uncovering the often-overlooked sounds that surround us in daily life. Through processes of capturing, translating, and amplifying these sounds, he brings them into perceptual focus, transforming them into immersive artistic experiences. His sound installations interact with visual and architectural spaces, inviting audiences to listen and perceive their environments in new ways.

In the 1970s, Fontana developed the concept of “sound sculpture,” treating both human and natural environments as “living” sources of sonic information. By establishing synchronized listening nodes across different locations, he transmits and reconfigures real-time acoustic signals within a designated site, creating dynamic sonic environments that transcend distance. This approach not only expands the possibilities of sound art, but also redefines the relationships between sound, time, and space.

Fontana’s work engages with the sonic potential of natural environments, urban soundscapes, and architectural structures. He frequently employs technology to capture vibrations and sounds beyond the range of human hearing—such as structural resonances of bridges, subtle oscillations of bells, desert winds, or melting glaciers—and transforms them into immersive auditory experiences. Notably, he has presented large-scale installations that reveal otherwise inaudible acoustic activity within architectural structures, allowing audiences to “hear” hidden sonic worlds.

His works have been presented in major public spaces and museums worldwide, including San Francisco, New York, Paris, London, Vienna, Berlin, Venice, and Tokyo, continuing to evolve across diverse cultural and geographical contexts.

In recent years, Fontana has further engaged with historical sites and environmental themes. Through projects that integrate architectural resonance and environmental sound, he transforms subtle acoustic signals into immersive sonic environments, rendering entire sites as living instruments. His practice positions sound as a medium for connection, empathy, and shared experience across culture

- Participants interested in sound art are warmly welcome to join.

-The series will be conducted primarily in English, with professional interpretation provided in Chinese.

-Please register online via the Museum’s official website. Admission will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis, with both confirmed and waitlisted participants announced on the website. If a confirmed participant is unable to attend, please cancel your registration online or by phone at least three days prior to the event. Cancellations will be replaced according to the order of the waiting list.

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