ARTS

Sonification projects that contribute to the field of art and express creative, aesthetic perspectives.

Part 1: An outstanding sonification in the arts category must meet ALL of the following three criteria.

1. It should move us. It should make us feel something.

Not necessarily in just a simple way of liking, but in drawing on states like nostalgia, vulnerability, connectedness, and empathy, as well as challenging discomfort.

2. It should create meaning for the audience.

Interpreting 'meaning' in different ways is part of the subjective value of art. However, we provide a tentative list that seems to have reasonable references, where meaningful art could mean that:

It creates insights about oneself and one’s life history.
It creates understanding about others and the world.
It creates understanding about the artist and their creative process.
It creates awareness of the aesthetic narrative of the piece
It creates insights about artistic techniques and materials.
The project should include at least one of the above interpretations of artistic meaning.

3. This meaning should be from our combined appraisal of both the sonified phenomenon, and the sound we hear representing it.

Sonification is the meeting of two very different worlds, the non-articulated subjective realm of sound, and the factual concrete phenomenal world. Our experience of the sonification should affect our understanding of the two, and where the two meet in an artistic way should have further takeaways. This is an acknowledgment of the unique form of sonification, and to understand that for these awards artistic excellence is about how the combination affects us, not just the component parts.

Part 2: An outstanding sonification in the arts category must meet at least TWO of the following criteria.

Note: As we are taking a broad and inclusive approach to sonification, some of these criteria may be in conflict with each other.

The work makes the listener feel something in a way unique to sonification.

The work achieves something that could only be achieved in sound, and could not be achieved in other sensory media (i.e. through visuals alone).

The work takes risks and pushes the boundaries of sonification art.

It is accessible to users regardless of their cultural background i.e., it does not require knowledge that is related to specific auditory or musical cultures, for instance Western or Oriental music, modal or serial music, and so on...

The work explores a phenomenological topic in a way that is artistically significant, e.g. gives rise to knowledge and awareness in an artistic way (as opposed to a communicative or analytic way).