I am because you are

I am because you are
A/V performance and interactive installation

A project of sonic anthropology and acoustic identities across China, Ethiopia, and Iceland.

IMBYA explores the frenetic evolution of major urban centers in China and Africa—landscapes in constant transformation, worn down and eroded by concrete and modernization. The project originates from two distinct components: the recording of environmental sounds, aimed at discovering and exploring the acoustic identity of each place, and video documentation of territorial transformation. An evolution, therefore, of sounds and acoustic identities, set in stark contrast to the still and unchanging nature of the white Icelandic landscapes—the third and final setting considered in the project. The study of these three scenarios thus brings together snow and silence with highways and construction sites, then markets, cars, and factories, all captured at the same hour: twilight.

The project unfolds in two directions: performance and installation.

IMBYA Performance consists of the live execution of video footage and soundscape recordings, processed in real time through live electronics software.

IMBYA Installation is an interactive installation that allows visitors to mix the sounds previously collected through field recording during artistic residencies in China, Ethiopia, and Iceland. At the same time, images of the three different landscapes—filmed with a fixed camera at twilight—blend together.