Tomoko Sauvage

‍Buloklok, 2022

Glass, water, hydrophone, pumps, tubes, sound system

Buloklok is conceived as a timepiece that counts the breathing rhythms of different animals. The glass sculptures release bubbles from their "mouths" each time the upper part of their cavities is filled with air, generating notes and rhythms according to the size of these cavities and the pressure of the pumps that operate them. The installation echoes the performative practice of Tomoko Sauvage, who uses cowrie shells as musical instruments producing bubble sounds. It also echoes the artist's recurring motif, the clepsydra, or water clock, considered the oldest instrument for measuring time. Until recently, time was elastic and defined by the observation of celestial bodies, with seasonal and geographical variations. Buloklok reflects on these fluid, empirical and intimate temporalities, just as each living being has its own breathing rhythms.

Glass sculptures created by glassblowers Takashi Hamada and Silicybine.

The first iterations of Buloklok were supported by Sonic Acts, Amsterdam, and co-supported by The 5th Floor, Tokyo.

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Invisible Landscape (Live)

SOUNDWALK COLLECTIVE
with FRANKIE & Tomoko Sauvage
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Live video by Pedro Maia
with footage by Stephan Crasneanscki

Opening performance of the Biennale Son
La Centrale, Saturday, August 30, 2025
Running time: approx. 45 minutes

Opening the second edition of the Biennale Son, Invisible Landscapes is a live performance by Soundwalk Collective, set in the heart of La Centrale - a former hydroelectric power station built to harness water from the surrounding glaciers. The plant was eventually shut down as the glaciers retreated, making this a site marked by the very disappearance of the natural systems on which it depended.

This new live version extends the sound installation presented in La Centrale's control room as part of the Biennale Son. It traces a sonic passage from the melting glaciers of Greenland to the arid deserts of Chile. Field recordings captured by Stephan Crasneanscki in 2024 form the basis of the piece, evoking the physical and acoustic transformation of these vanishing environments.

The performance features musician and singer FRANKIE (Franziska Aigner), whose work lies at the intersection of performance, music and philosophy. Performing live on cello and voice excerpts from Rachel Carson's environmental writings, she draws on her experience as a collaborator with Anne Imhof, William Forsythe and Holly Herndon, as well as her solo practice, which combines classical instrumentation, voice and electronics.

Paris-based composer and sound artist Tomoko Sauvage plays with porcelain bowls filled with water and amplified by hydrophones. Her instrument, developed through long experimentation, produces tonal textures shaped by water movement and resonance. For this piece, she evokes the sound of singing sands - an acoustic phenomenon found in some of the world's driest landscapes.

The live set also includes video projections by Pedro Maia, composed of images shot by Crasneanscki in Greenland, Iceland and extreme desert areas. This visual dimension extends the work's spatial and ecological reach, bringing sound and image together in a performance that reflects on environmental transformation and loss.

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Water bowls

Sound performance
La Centrale, Saturday, August 30, 2025

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Tomoko Sauvage

Born in 1976
Based in Paris

Tomoko Sauvage's work lies at the intersection of natural elements and electronic music, creating immersive soundscapes. Her work often invites us to experience sound in a sensory and contemplative way through instruments that combine water, ceramics, underwater amplification, and electronics. Tomoko Sauvage explores the unpredictable dynamics of these materials through performances and sound installations.