Witness Stand Seoul is a sound installation for a city, situated across contested sites. Led in a process by Australian sound artists Madeleine Flynn and Tim Humphrey, working in collaboration with Seoul based city dramaturg, Jin Yim and Joho Kim, the work is created through a research and development period with local artists, cultural partners and sites.

Witness Stand Seoul occurs on a series of contested sites, and arises from our desire to create a form that can encompass different points of view, held within a tolerant and robust musical framework. At multiple sites across the city of Seoul “a sonic monument” will be developed as a series of performances, live and recorded, focussing attention on what may have been unheard, placing audience, performer alike in direct, situated relationship with these places. In Seoul, we are working closely together with the Korean team to create a new sonic interpretation of the city, with a focus on unheard communities. Writer, artist, and social researcher Joho Kim will work with the rest of the team from October 2024, assembling conversations from unheard communities across the city of Seoul. Current sites of interest are the rooftops of Arko Theatre and Cecil Theatre, and several sites in Naksan Park. Witness Stand is a deeply collaborative offering a potent response to sites of contestation, with lingering resonances for its place. Designed with a climate conscious footprint, the work is a form that can travel while minimizing carbon impact. Post performance season, the work continues as a sonic geolocated piece, available to access online.