News of a forthcoming Chris Watson happening reached us today. As always, we suggest that you go along if you’re able – witnessing anything that Chris does is a deeply enriching experience.

Keep an eye out for some words on the matter from Chris, but for now, here’s the press release:

The Gallery, Tyneside Cinema, is proud to premiere a new exhibition by Chris Watson, one of the world’s most esteemed and influential sound artists.

Opening 21 June 2016, Chris Watson: The Town Moor – A Portrait in Sound, has been a collaboration with BBC Newcastle and is an acoustic picture of the Town Moor – an ancient and vast grazing common located in the centre of Newcastle.

Recorded over the course of one year, Chris Watson meticulously documented the sounds of the Town Moor as part of an original commission for BBC Newcastle. Working alongside BBC producer Murphy Cobbing, Watson’s material was woven into a four-part radio series and also archived on a dedicated BBC Online page. As a culmination of the project Watson has now reworked the recordings for The Gallery as a 40-minute ‘dark’ cinema experience, presented in full-sphere ambisonic sound to create an incredibly rich and immersive sonic experience.

Following the aural narrative provided by the seasons, the audience will become the image-makers themselves. This curatorial concept has two goals: providing Chris Watson’s practice with a new critical context, and offering the audience an opportunity to reflect on the importance of sound within the cinematic experience.

Watson is renowned for creating soundscapes that evoke the atmosphere of a particular place, be that the sound of a single ant walking for David Attenborough’s series Life in the Undergrowth, or in the case of Town Moor, an audio portrait of the green lungs at the heart of the city of Newcastle: its sounds, sights, birds, beasts and people.

The Gallery, Tyneside Cinema,
10 – 12 Pilgrim Street,
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 6QG

Admission free / timed entry
Exhibition duration: 40 minutes