Gardens of Sound:
A Conversation with Hye Young Sin

Could you give us a brief introduction about yourself?
Hello, I'm Hye Young Sin, and I make art in the form of installations, sculptures, sounds, and performances. My current base is in Berlin.

You completed your study in Consumer Science and Information Culture at Seoul National University. What impact do you think it had on your artistic method and process? Do any of those methodologies from your study influence your work at present?
It may be because I studied consumer science that I am constantly attentive towards tracking the various types of products present in the market. And through this, I have become very much interested in objects and things. Since they encapsulate various value systems, lifestyles, technologies, and also the cultural preferences of the time they are made in.

Specifically, I have been fascinated by the shapes and structures of things and tools made just to be used as a functional object. At times, certain tools with unknown functionality become a source for experimenting with form. For instance, the agricultural tools, structurally speaking, seem pretty basic. However, they are extremely difficult to understand even after having some hands-on experience in farming. Since first encountering such tools in a hardware store in 2019, I have been continuously working on a sculptural series using agricultural implements.

Next came your studies in Media Art in Germany. Why did you opt for Germany and Media Art?
Choosing Germany was a very practical decision on my part. As I had not majored in art in Korea and was already employed after graduating from college, I had planned for my overseas studies without informing my family. In any case, the cost of education needed to be very low in order to make overseas studies feasible, and hence affordability became my top priority. I found out that there are several European universities offering relatively affordable fees and started looking at the state art academies of Germany, which I had always admired.

I was not keen to concentrate on one particular subject at the outset. Being fascinated by the connections between matter and technology, system and environment, this multi-disciplinary subject appealed to me greatly. During my studies in the Academy of Media Arts Cologne, I was exposed to sounds, performances, media theories, and mechanical structures. These experiences have been extremely instrumental for my present-day practices.

You have realized a wide range of works so far. Could you select and introduce three representative works that reflect your artistic world particularly well? It would be great if you could talk about the background of their creation, the questions behind them, and the core message you wanted to convey.
Instead of mentioning representative artworks, I would like to talk about my recent ones.

The first one is the sound installation “Plastic Garden - Trellis,” related to performance. It belongs to the series “Plastic Garden,” where I explore plastic plants that do not grow thanks to water and sun but by using sound, and the main point of the piece is "What makes a garden a garden?"

In this artwork, I focused on the history of the trellis known for millennia and connected it with the strings of musical instruments and small engines, which makes the trellis sound like a string instrument. In this case, sound acts as cultivation.

My interest in plants emerged during the Covid-19 pandemic, when caring for houseplants became an important part of my everyday life. This experience led to the work Early Growth. Later, at my mother’s suggestion, I visited an urban farm. I knew that my mother had been growing vegetables for more than ten years, but until then I had not taken much interest in it. However, the impression from that first visit remains vivid to this day. Since then, my work has continuously engaged with the question of how humans cultivate and care for other living beings.

As these works involve movement and sound, the distribution of care instructions and maintenance also became an aspect of the work process. Like in a garden, I brought the hidden labor into light and allowed visitors to become temporary co-caretakers. The next work that I would like to present is the performance “trashes”. It is a work inspired by my moving assistant asking me why I am moving around “such trash” during my move right after graduation. Although I laughed about it, after looking into his eyes, he was indeed curious about it. It struck me that different individuals give different values to things. This is what gave rise to using trash in my artwork.

Over a longer period of time, I collected and sorted everyday waste and realized how strongly consumption, lifestyles, and patterns of movement are inscribed in it. For me, waste became a material archive of individual and social conditions.

In the performance, I clean those objects that I had been using mostly in my studio and kitchen and then connect them with motors and basic mechanical devices. The sounds and movement that happen are uncontrollable. Thus, the garbage itself acts as an agent whose friction and resistance shape the development of the performance. Thirdly, there is a performance series called “Housewarming”. This series originated from the idea of developing the notion of “plastic plants that grow through sound” from gardens into greenhouses. It is based on the premise that the notion of “housewarming” came from the practice of warming a new house through fire. In my imaginary scenario, I heat a greenhouse using sound through the performance of sound.

As I began designing the acoustics of my installation through the use of fans and various musical instruments, I started gaining interest in the structure of the greenhouse itself. When researching its history, I found myself becoming fascinated with the issue of how climate regulation and life process control are carried out in human terms. It turned out that the same construction receives different names and exists in various materials according to the era or cultural context. As we call such construction a “greenhouse” in Europe, the Korean term “vinyl house” is more appropriate.

In the performance, a sound picture evolves in which musical wind instruments, harmonica and recorder, combine their sounds with the sound of a fan; thus, it seems that the density and temperature of the space are changing. Rather than creating any certain tones or rhythms, what really matters here is the process which alters the dynamics of interactions between the vinyl foil, air, and the structure. Having tried working with automatic timed sound systems at first, I now prefer to concentrate on the physical reaction of the vinyl foil itself. The site of performance or installation is crucial for your work. How important is location to you in your art and how do you try to connect with the spectators?
By working in sound installations and performances, I have realized that the site should be understood not only as an element in which the works are performed, but rather as a construction in which the sound, the space, and human mobility interact and make up a real-life event. This is because sound is not static; rather, it depends on the place and motion of its recipients. Thus, every performance of the same work becomes unique, thanks to the interaction of sound and people in the particular space.

This is why I focus carefully on installing works, thinking about how the sound resonates inside the room, how exterior sounds interact with the internal space, and what kind of connections can be found between sound, movement, and pause.

What is your view on the current development of AI art?
Last year, I started exploring AI both as a tool and as a partner. Using the language and photography capabilities of ChatGPT, we analyzed text scores and composed a song duet. We rehearsed daily and ultimately even performed live on stage.

Initially, this approach appeared to me as a way to train the AI. Gradually, however, the cooperation evolved into something more intimate, where our interaction resembled the one between humans. For me, the most fascinating aspect was the ability of the AI to act as a communicating counterpart despite the lack of emotions or needs. Mistakes were repeatedly made by it without frustration or exhaustion, but rather continued attempts. The frustration, in this case, was mine. However, when using AI for artistic projects, I am concerned not only about the creation itself but also critical exploration of the AI mechanisms and structure.

However, in my artistic practice using AI, apart from exploring the potential of the creative applications of AI, I have been equally curious about interrogating how AI operates and under what circumstances. In this regard, the video artwork “Tell You Something Bad” by my fellow artist Areumbit Park has been highly influential for me, wherein she exposes the reality of the AI training interface as well as the labor behind it. In her artwork, there is an inherent paradox wherein the human labor involved in enhancing AI models encounters unethical and violent content.

Currently, you live in Berlin. How important is this place for your artistic identity? How does your surroundings influence your work process?
One of the influences which affect my work process is associated with the existence of many community gardens in Berlin. Gardens of different sizes are organically integrated into the city environment, and it is possible for outsiders to join the community quite easily due to various workshops or events organized by community members. Right now, at spring time, when all kinds of help are especially needed in the garden, I regularly visit and help weeding and replanting the beds. When peeling aside the layer of dried leaves and finding fresh soil under it, I suddenly realize that I am witnessing the powerful energy of the current season.

I gain a lot of knowledge from plants as well as from other people who cultivate them collectively. You are always meeting new people, do not even know each other's names, but somehow manage to connect and share your amazement regarding plants' growth and future possibilities. I believe it is precisely because of this free community organization which affects me in a positive way.

You have attended many international festivals and fairs. Do you see any discrepancies in the reception of your artwork in other cultural settings?
When I showed the performance “Plastic Garden – Trellis” at the inauguration of my solo exhibition in Berlin last year, some people came up to me and said, "When I heard those sounds that resembled bells and pipes, I imagined the movie Pamyo (Exhuma)," or "It was as though I was in a shamanic environment." I did not anticipate these types of responses at all, which were very surprising and also exhilarating to hear.

On another occasion, after seeing the sound installation Spring Arches from my solo exhibition two years ago and noticing the shiny materials, a friend jokingly said, “Since when are your works so perverted?” At the same time, another visitor told me he found the same piece deeply meditative. When my friend heard this, he laughed and said, “I think I’ve just been living in Berlin too long.” These differing reactions amused us both and constantly remind me how open and multilayered perception can be.

What is your experience with learning the German language? How do you cope with the cultural differences in your job?
To get ready for entrance exams at a German art college, I studied German actively. However, once I was admitted, I spoke mainly English with my peers, and thus my possibilities to use German were greatly diminished. Now, I continue to learn the language by its application in certain situations. Every time I have to give a speech or conduct a workshop for children, I collect relevant phrases.

At the beginning of my studies abroad, I experienced the challenges arising from linguistic and cultural differences very emotionally. When communication did not go smoothly or I did not fully understand situations, I often withdrew. Only when I accepted that these differences cannot be fully resolved and began to see them as starting points for new perspectives and relationships did dealing with them become much easier.

How does your daily life as an artist look like? Where can you find your inspiration?
Since I have performances or exhibitions in different cities every month, I travel a lot. In periods without fixed commitments, however, my daily life follows a fairly regular routine. I usually go to bed around 11 p.m., get up at 6 a.m., take a walk in the nearby park, and then start working right away. In my free time, I enjoy visiting exhibitions or performances and regularly practice yoga or go swimming.

One place in Berlin that I would especially recommend is LOOM. Only one person per hour is allowed to visit the exhibition, so advance registration is required. This limitation makes it possible to engage very deeply with the space and the works and to build an intense relationship with them. Since the space is run by the artist Nayoung Kim, I find a great deal of inspiration there not only in the exhibitions themselves, but also in the curatorial practice, which is why I return regularly.

Finally, could you tell us what you are currently working on or what projects you are planning for the future? In which direction would you like to further develop your work?
At the moment, I am once again working more sculpturally with the objects I previously used in the piece trashes. The project originally began as a sound performance, but over the course of several performances, I increasingly discovered the formal potential of these materials.

Because performance and sculpture are very different media, my work is currently in an exciting transitional phase. I am experimenting a great deal and gathering new experiences that help me further develop my artistic practice and open it up in a new direction.

Interview & Concept: Sohee Shin
Editing: Leslie Klatte
German & English Translation: Leslie Klatte