The Aural Impulse: Sound-Driven Approaches in Contemporary Black Audiovisual Aesthetics

Far from functioning as a mere accompaniment or effect, sound can deeply inform its visual counterpart, sometimes even calling for its withdrawal. This creates a tension that holds particular significance in the formal choices of various Afro-descendant artists. These artists seem to identify the domain of the audible as a unique field for articulating non-white subjectivities, producing a critical alternative to the ocularcentric impasse of Western modernity. Specifically, the analysis focuses on specific works – Oh Adelaide! (2010) by Sonia Boyce, AGHDRA (2021) by Arthur Jafa, and Sunshine State (2022) by Steve McQueen – that remediate pre-existing forms of representation, texts, and genres and interrogate their very conditions of possibility, bringing into play the political and cultural dimension of listening.