Reader’s Bloc: Soundscapes of War

Drummer, Tyeb Mehta, 1988, Oil on canvas, MAC.00459

This month, we tune into the unsettling acoustics of conflict. The Drone Eats with Me, a personal diary by Atef Abu Saif offers an intimate, harrowing perspective from Gaza – where the whir of drones and sudden explosions become a permanent soundtrack to daily life. As Palestinians recall lives interrupted, the soundscape of war becomes etched into memory.

But what about those of us who watch from a distance? In Silence on Trial, Paul Virilio confronts the uncomfortable reality of spectatorship in the age of immersive media. When war becomes another stream in our feed, at what point does our silence become complicity, or worse –  erasure?

Join us as we examine the acoustics of war, the politics of silence, and what it means to truly listen.

The Reader’s Bloc is an online/IRL group of readers taking part in reading, listening and sharing exercises around texts that help us learn more about ourselves, the identities we share and the communities we live in.

This session is conducted as part of our engagements for the MAP Youth Collective. The MAP Youth Collective is a community for young people (18-25 year olds) to engage with the arts and culture sector. The collective is for, of and by young people — to explore our shared identities and interests through art.