Soundings | Cheryl E Leonard and Genevieve Swifte

Soundings The determination of any physical property at a depth in the sea or at a height in the atmosphere; an instance of this. -Oxford English Dictionary Soundings will open Tuesday 22nd September from 6 to 8pm with a live musical performance at 7pm Soundings implies a process of investigation through which projections might be made into an environment that are received back as a vibration, an echo or a reflection. A collaboration between visual artist Genevieve Swifte and composer Cheryl E. Leonard, Soundings explores environments of the High Arctic and South-eastern Australia by creating a series of thresholds between sound and light, height and depth, imagery and musicality. Field recordings with compositions for shells, stones and glass are interwoven with lens-based imagery and works on paper that together consider points of reference for the interconnectedness between the body and the earth. Cheryl E. Leonard is a composer, performer, and instrument builder whose works investigate sounds, structures, and objects from the natural world. She uses microphones to explore the subtle intricacies of sounds and develops compositions that highlight these unique voices. Her projects often feature sculptural natural-object instruments and field recordings from remote locales. Leonard has received grants from the National Science Foundation’s Antarctic Artists and Writers Program, American Music Center, American Composers Forum, and ASCAP. Her commissions include works for Kronos Quartet and Illuminated Corridor. She has been awarded residencies at Djerassi, the Arctic Circle, Oberpfälzer Künstlerhaus, Villa Montalvo, and Engine 27. Genevieve Swifte is an award winning artist and photographer who’s works explore transgressions of sensory experience, embodiment and representations of light via lens based imagery and mark-making. Currently undertaking a doctorate at The Australian National University School of Art, Photography and Media Arts Workshop, Swifte’s practice-led research spans the photography of Francesca Woodman, the performative earth art of Ana Medieta, photographic histories and philosophies, Baroque iconography, Renaissance drawing techniques, sound art, feminist theory, affect and the aesthetics of light. Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Friday 10:30am-5pm; Saturday 12-5pm; Closed Sun, Mon and public holidays