After Dark: Listen
Discover the science behind sound and the role it plays in the environment. Join us for a screening of Last of the Nightingales, a short documentary about pioneering sound ecologist Bernie Krause, plus a conversation with filmmaker Masha Karpoukhina. Dive deeper with our exhibits about sound: challenge yourself to tread lightly on a gravel path, share your favorite sound memories, and make some noise while having fun!
Film screening and conversation
With Director Masha Karpoukhina
When was the last time you listened to nature? Experience the rich acoustic beauty of the living world through the ears of acoustic ecologist Bernie Krause. For decades, Krause has listened and recorded natural soundscapes even as they fade before our ears. Last of the Nightingales (2024, 33 min.) tells the story of Krause’s tireless efforts to gather wild field recordings. It draws our attention to the profound effects that climate change is having on the sounds of the natural world. And it reminds us that it’s not too late to begin listening.
Masha Karpoukhina is an independent director, cinematographer, and editor. A “working class filmmaker” who produces documentary content for socially minded organizations, Karpoukhina also creates her own films that focus on issues of the climate crisis, Indigenous sovereignty, women's rights, and stories that help expand our definition of life and re-examine our relationship with it.
The screening will be followed by a conversation between filmmaker Masha Karpoukhina and Exploratorium Program Director Sam Sharkland, with questions from the audience.
Sound Sculptures
With Olivia Ting
This powerful artwork was inspired by the story of Helen Keller experiencing a broadcast of a Beethoven symphony with her hands on the radio. Moved by the image of Keller connecting with Beethoven—himself famously deaf—across time and space, artist Olivia Ting created this haptic series to reflect on the relationship between sound and sight.
The five haptic radios are meant to be touched, and Ting used audio sources from her neighborhood in San Francisco's outer Parkside. Sounds of the ocean, birds, foghorns, and MUNI tracks are translated into vibrations and then encapsulated as dioramas, interwoven with Beethoven's 6th Symphony.
This activity was funded in part by the San Francisco Arts Commission.
Olivia Ting is a deaf visual artist whose work explores the liminal space between hearing and silence. Her work spans installations with projections, short films, graphic design, and recently, haptics. She received degrees from Pomona College, ArtCenter College of Design, and UC Berkeley.
With the Explainers
Learn about the science behind sound with our Explainers!
Discover which vibrations are visible, create a sound that only you can hear with our “Secret Bell” activity, and dissect speakers to find out how they turn electrical energy into mechanical energy.
