Continuing our series of talks inspired by the four spiritual elements of Fire, Air, Water and Earth, our next talk is about Sound (Air).

Contemplative listening by Dr Richard Bentley

Dr Bentley would like to use this opportunity to share sounds, writings and nascent thinking around contemplative listening, an approach to his work as a sound artist that continues to elude clear definition. Contemplative approaches in the visual arts, crafts, dance, music and photography have explored how the qualities of contemplative practice are cultivated and given expression through the arts, qualities such as silence, awareness, interiority, openness and presence. Dr Bentley wishes to revisit these elements in the context of sound art and explore an eco-sonic approach to practice that acknowledges fields of listening, which lie beyond the ear or microphone.

Bio

As a sound artist, Dr Bentley's work explores contemplative listening and sound art practices, inviting others to foster awareness of the soundscape and cultivate a playful relationship with their own sound-making. He collaborates with fellow artists and like-minded organisations to develop participatory workshops, soundwalks, e-health initiatives and a range of sound works. Alongside this, he works as a Buddhist Healthcare Chaplain at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, where he also develops and manages arts in health initiatives.

Dr Bentley has a PhD in Sound Art, following a Masters Degree in Community Arts at Goldsmiths University of London. He has spent the last nine years working for clients such as The Woodland Trust, Historic England, Crisis, Reading University, Intelligent Health, The Roald Dahl Museum, Nature Nurture, The Annual Daydream Harvest, Beautiful Creatures and Festive Road. He is a qualified lecturer, having twenty years’ teaching experience in Further and Higher Education and is an ambassador for Hush City App, Silent Space and UK representative for Quiet Parks International.

www.anoisysilence.com

The video recording of the event is now available on our YouTube channel Spirituality and the Arts Special Interest Group 

Join our  Facebook Group called Spirituality and the Arts using this link. 

For more details, see https://spiritualitystudiesnetwork.org/Spirituality-and-the-Arts-SIG

The SIG Chairs: the Rev. Prof. June Boyce-Tillman, Dr Lila Moore, Annalisa Burello.