The sound sculpture "Listening Is Making Sense" uses wooden beams as vectors for the propagation of sound vibrations diffused through the wood by tactile transducers (loudspeakers that convert the audio signal into mechanical vibration). The transducers are positioned in the barycenter of the structures so that the sound can propagate by contact through the beams and change its frequencies and dynamics according to the different properties of filtering and absorption of the sound waves by the wood. The sculpture is apparently silent and the only way to listen to it is therefore to get into physical contact with the resonant matter by placing the ear straight onto the wood.

We're used to the fact that sound propagates through air, but the waves (the energy) that we call sound can spread through any matter. With this sculpture I wanted the audience to experience an uncommon approach to sound listening, by making the sound spread along the length of a series of wooden beams, creating a sort of wooden audio circuit. The sculpture is apparently silent and the only way to listen to it is by getting into physical contact with the resonant matter therefore by placing the ear straight onto the wood. It can be enjoyed by many visitors at the same time encouraging interaction and dialogue with the object and between other people. The sculpture also has a strong spacial impact in the exhibition room because of its dimensions and its quasi-architectural structure that, at first glance, appears random, just like a large scale mikado toy but instead has an inner organization. This is what at first catches the audience's attention, but the real goal of the sculpture is to be physically used and therefore to be sonically experienced.

Since 2010 several versions of the sculpture were made, with different size and format of beams, usually a number of 10-12 smooth pine wood construction beams (the length variated between 3 to 4,5 m). The challenge was to create a sculpture that is only apparently silent but that instead has its very own sound that can be heard only by placing our ear on its structure. The composition of the wooden beams is not visually driven but it’s driven by structure: the aim is to create a stable architectural structure in which each beam is counterbalanced with others; some beams have to jut out to invite the audience to easily lay their ears on them to listen to the sound. This structure must create a sort of wooden audio circuit because the sound vibrations are diffused through the wood by tactile transducers (loudspeakers that convert the audio signal into mechanical vibration). The transducers are placed in the barycenter of the sculpture and not visible to the audience; the monophonic sound propagates by contact through the beams and changes its frequencies and dynamics according to the different properties of filtering and absorption of the sound waves by the wood, therefore the audience experiences slight sound variations in each wooden beam.

Materials: 12 wooden beams (12x20x430cm each), transducers, audio system Dimensions: variable dimensions – duration 68min. loop Several versions of the sculpture were made, with different size and format of beams, usually a number of 10-12 smooth pine wood construction beams (the length variated between 3 to 4,5 m). Each time the sculpture is made specifically for the exhibition space. Therefore the dimensions may vary, the diameter takes approximately an area of 4 to 6 meters. The weight of the work depends on the type of wood and the dimensions of the beams; it may vary approximately from 300 up to 500 kilos.